The latest break-in happened in a neighborhood just southwest of the Beltway and Fallbrook.
Folks living here have their guards up. A home was hit last month and the homeowner was stunned by the unusual way the thieves got inside.
In the northwest Harris County subdivision of Willow Pointe, Gregg Decker couldn't believe how fast his neighbor's home was burglarized.
"Didn't see a thing that day," Decker said. "That day I was probably gone for an hour and a half."
In that time, investigators say someone used a glass cutter on a window at the rear of his neighbor's home, carefully removing the glass and placing it on the ground in order to avoid making the sound of shattering glass.
"Never saw a a thing. They were in and out apparently in minutes," said
They took jewelry, a camera and a laptop. The Harris County Sheriff's Office says there have been nine home burglaries in this general area near Jersey Village since May. About a year ago, detectives say one thief was backing his vehicle into victim's garages and closing the door while loading up their stuff.
Decker says four houses on his street alone have been burglarized in the last few years.
"It does definitely scare homeowners," said Scott Ward with the Willow Pointe Homeowners Association.
Ward sent out a newsletter, even an email blast,= to residents warning them to be on alert. Stopping crime isn't just up to the police -- Ward notes homeowners must be vigilant about looking out for themselves.
"It really comes from the homeowners who see something out of the norm," said Ward.
What homeowners here are doing to try and cut the number of crimes in their neighborhood.
