Almost 50 neighbors gathered around the Neighborhood Watch sign on Thursday night -- concerned, frustrated and a little scared. Foster City Police Chief Craig Courtin stopped by to answer their questions about a recent break-in where people were still in their home.
"Folks' home is their sanctuary," Chief Courtin said to the crowd. "It is the place on earth where we should all feel secure. And the fact that somebody entered while people were home made it that much more serious."
Foster City police say 18-year old Justin Shing broke into two homes in the past couple of weeks on Matsonia Drive. In one of them, police say he entered a bedroom and touched a 17-year old girl while performing a sexual act on himself. Shing faces sexual assault and burglary charges.
"Watching out for each other," Pamela Walsh, a concerned neighbor, said. "And watching out for our kids. We can do a lot to protect ourselves and also to let him know and his family that we're not going to put up with that in our neighborhood."
Shing is out on bail and is at home -- literally less than a block from the homes police said he broke into. Parents are outraged Shing is back in the neighborhood. Chief Courtin says he understands why they're upset.
"The frustrations that we feel in law enforcement sometimes are reflected what you folks are feeling now. But that's the way that the system is," Courtin said.
In the meantime, neighbors are keeping a close eye on Shing's every move.
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"I've gotten a lot of text messages. He's outside. He's with his dogs. Yeah we know where he is," Walsh said.
Police say they will pass by Shing's home as often as they can.
"We will continue to make passing checks in the area, but this needs to be a cooperative effort," Courtin said.
