Two separate burglary victims in Ewa believe incidents are connected

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – Residents in Ewa Gentry are sounding the alarm on a string of alleged burglaries they think are connected, and they were caught on camera.

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One family said a burglary took place in their home Saturday, Aug. 8.

“It just makes you feel so incredibly vulnerable and unsafe,” said the resident, who wished to remain anonymous.

The resident recalled the chilling experience of seeing someone break into their home.

“For a short period of time one evening, nobody was home, when we had come home, a whole day had actually gone by without me entering the closet that I keep these valuables in,” the resident said.

“It’s just really surreal in the most negative way possible to see a stranger purposely, with full intent, enter the privacy of your home,” the resident added.

The alleged burglar spent about 30 minutes in the home, taking thousands of dollars’ worth of jewelry and sentimental items.

“I’ve grown up in Ewa Beach, it’s just fine. I was very relaxed about the whole idea of securing your home, because the idea that this would have happened to us hadn’t come across,” the resident said.

The family believes that this wasn’t an isolated event.

Just a month before, another home was broken into, and that family has a very similar story.

“We got to talking, and we realized a lot of similarities, you know,” the family said.

The other family, who will also remain anonymous, lives in an area near the first house.

They were also not home when the break-in happened.

“(My kids) started screaming and I’m like what are you screaming about, you know, they’re like, ‘mom everything is like everywhere, it’s a mess. All the windows are open, all the doors are open.’”

Both victims described the same individual who allegedly broke in after seeing their security footage.

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“It seems to be a man, they wear a long pants, a hoodie, possibly like a homemade ski mask. He had a mask on and white gloves and he had a flashlight,” they said.

The burglar also allegedly took similar jewelry at the second home.

“They stole certain items, and they left a lot of other items, and so they only wanted specific things, it seemed like,” they said.

Both families filed police reports and are working with authorities on each case.

In a written statement, Honolulu police said:

“HPD officers are actively investigating these cases. At this time there is no indication that they are related, and no further details will be released.”

In the meantime, they’ve gone to the community for help, posting on social media hoping that the attention can solve the crimes.

“What I think is that with enough pressure, this person may want to come forward and do the right thing,” Michael Kitchens of Stolen Stuff Hawaii said. “Especially if there’s enough pressure on them to show that, hey, that this is really being paid attention to.”

The victims are asking the individual to return the items and that it’s not too late to make things right.

“I just hope everybody knows that this is happening around the area and I hope it prevents it from happening to someone else.”

“It’s not just the loss of material things, it’s the loss of that feeling of safety in your home.”

If you have any tips, report it to CrimeStoppers Honolulu at (808) 955-8300 or the anonymous tip site on Stolen Stuff Hawaii.

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