Apartment residents on alert after recent car break-ins in SW Houston

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- There were more than two dozen car break-ins in just a week at an apartment complex near Hermann Park. The residents probably thought their cars were safe since they park in a gated garage.

"You can still see there's glass," said victim Ella Masar.

Masar showed us her SUV today and the shards of glass scattered still inside of it. She is among 28 people living at a Houston apartment complex who have reported vehicle break-ins over the last two weeks.

"They ransacked it. They put everything in the back seat to the front," Masar said.

Houston police say someone broke into nine vehicles inside a parking garage at the Marquis Lofts at Hermann Park this week, another 19 June 6th. In some cases, items were stolen. In other cases, nothing was taken.

Masar is team captain for the Houston Dash, with the National Women's Soccer League. She's lived around the country and says her vehicle has only been broken into once before.

She calls the experience unsettling saying, "Its our choice to live here and stay here. If it gets to the point where we don't think its safe, we have the opportunity to leave."

Management at the property, located near Almeda Road and Camden Drive, says they have added security patrols to prevent future thefts.

There are surveillance cameras positioned around the property and the complex has shared video, potentially of the suspect, with police. They would not release that video to us for broadcast, even if it could aid in catching whoever is responsible for the break-ins.