Local

Burglars target Lake Mary residents during the day

LAKE MARY, Fla. — Lake Mary police said more burglars are striking during the middle of the day, so officers are stepping up neighborhood patrols, hoping to stop the growing trend.

Police said the burglars would rather be in a home while the owner is away, so they're waiting until the victims go to work.

"Especially this time of year, you get more burglaries than you normally would," said Zach Hudson of the Lake Mary Police Department.

Bettie Penrod said she makes sure to lock up her house when she leaves, and she has three dogs to keep an eye on things.

"I think that's the biggest deterrent of all," she said.

Police said, often times, crooks scope out neighborhoods and take note of who's going to work. Once they're gone, police said, the criminals come back and break into the resident's home.

In the meantime, police have increased patrols, and they're encouraging people to watch over their neighbors'homes when they're away.

Last week, an alert neighbor spotted burglars breaking into a home, so they called police. Police immediately responded and searched for them. Although the robbers got away, police were able to foil the crime.

Police ask residents to make sure their home looks occupied and to make it difficult to break into by locking all outside doors and windows.

Also, keep garage doors locked and closed.