San Jose

‘They Were Prepared': Realtor Says Burglars Targeted Home for Sale in San Jose

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A realtor says burglars targeted a San Jose home still on the market.

Police are now trying to figure out if they got the idea by going to an open house and casing the home.

Footage from a surveillance camera shows someone rolling a brand new refrigerator out of a vacant condo for sale in East San Jose. The footage was provided by the homeowner. NBC Bay Area is blurring the faces seen in the footage because police have not yet identified anyone in the footage as suspects.

"It seemed like it was a group of three or four people," realtor Cesar Cadena said. "This doesn't seem like it was just this particular house. They were prepared."

Three days later, Cadena said someone tried to break into the home a second time, but that time, his client's friend was staying at the home.

"They were trying to get in through the side window again" Cadena said. "He called the cops."

Cadena believes the thieves may have targeted the home after seeing the new kitchen appliances during an open house.

"I felt that, 'Wow, this is probably happening to a lot of realtors and they’re not reporting it because they're afraid that they're not going to be able to sell their listings,'" he said.

The Silicon Valley Association of Realtors said while it hasn't received recent reports of thieves targeting homes for sale, it now plans to alert members about the recent case.

Cadena said in the future he will advise his clients to invest in a surveillance system to provide added protection.

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