Dramatic spike in burglaries terrorizes Encino residents, who want greater accountability

ENCINO, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- A dramatic spike in burglaries has Encino-area residents fearful to leave their homes, for if they do, it could be ransacked.

According to the LAPD, there have been more than 400 burglaries in the Encino area in the past 12 months. And, 2022 had the highest number of burglaries in the area in at least a decade.

It is unclear if the string of burglaries are related, but the trend has gotten the attention of residents, who live in constant fear that their home is next.

Ring video captured one of the latest brazen burglaries. It happened this past Friday. Four men can be seen trying to enter and then fleeing an Encino home in the middle of the day.

A woman was home at the time, who can be seen yelling and running out of her house, likely saving many of her valuables from being lost.

"Middle of the day, in the afternoon. And then luckily my husband was there, and that really gave me the strength to really run out," said the woman, who did not want to be identified out of fear for the suspects who remain on the loose.

"I haven't been leaving my house because I'm worried they're gonna come back again," she said to Eyewitness News.

The woman is not alone. Another Encino resident, who identified himself as Joe S., said he feels like a sitting duck.

"We're just another duck sitting, (waiting) to get caught at some point, it feels like," he said.

Joe grew up in Encino Hills and said he has owned his home in the neighborhood for six years. He said he has seen crime spike in the past six months.

Joe told Eyewitness News that he knows of four homes that have been burglarized in the past three months, including a relative's.

"With my cousin, they completely ransacked his home. They took passports. They took jewelry. The house was a total mess. It was destroyed. They couldn't live there for a couple of days," he said.

The LAPD said it is investigating the burglaries, including the latest one on Friday.

But the lack of arrests has people like the woman who nearly had her home ransacked feeling terrified.

"They need to be punished. They need to have some kind of consequences. They cannot just terrify this neighborhood," said the woman.