Deputies: Thieves steal children's Christmas gifts, valuables from home

CASSELBERRY, Fla. — A Seminole County woman said she feels as if Christmas was stolen from her when thieves broke into her home and stole her family’s gifts, along with some of her most precious belongings.

Julie Mills said the thieves stole more than $10,000 worth of items from her home.

An observant neighbor saw the burglars as they sped away from the home on Spicewood Lane in Casselberry.

Mills was on her way to a cleaning job when she got the call that someone was breaking into her home.

“We just felt so violated and afraid,” said Mills.

When she got home, she found that thieves had rummaged through her drawers, turned her mattress upside down and taken a computer, her televisions, an Xbox and $3,000 in cash.

“They just took everything they could run out the door with,” Mills said.

She said to make matters worse, all the Christmas gifts for her grandchildren were gone.

“I only have a couple of days now to try to make Christmas for my kids and grandkids. That’s the hardest thing,” Mills said.

The neighbor who called authorities said she saw either four or five men loading Mills' stuff into a car and driving away.

Hours after the incident, four people broke into a home in Orange County with an 11-year-old girl inside.

The Seminole County Sheriff’s Office did not know if there was any connection between the break-ins.

Cox Media Group