San Diego

Spike in Burglaries Targeting Chula Vista Schools: PD

A total of four schools were burglarized including some high schools and one middle school in Chula Vista.

A string of burglaries targeting multiple schools in the South Bay has local police asking the community to be alert.

The Chula Vista Police Department turned to the public for help on social media late Monday. In a tweet, the department said their detectives are working to solve numerous burglaries that took place after-hours at local schools.

During these raids, police say thieves stole high-value items including photography cameras, laptops and money. The burglaries hit a total of four schools including some high schools on the east side of Chula Vista and one middle school on the west side.

Police believe the burglaries are taking place between midnight and 5 a.m. when the schools are closed.

"The school should be vacated and dark, so if you see anybody jumping fences, cars in the parking lot, people entering the campuses after hours...those are the kind of things," CVPD Sgt. Joe Picone said.

Investigators are hoping that someone might come forward with surveillance video or other evidence that could help.

"If somebody has cameras near a school that catches parking lots and things like that, if they wouldn't mind giving us a call, and we actually have a database that keeps track of that," Picone explained. "So it's very beneficial if people call in and they have something like that."

If anyone has information about the crimes, they were asked to contact police at (619)691-5151. Picone told NBC 7 that community policing is extremely important in these situations.

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