La Verne apartment manager caught on camera allegedly burglarizing tenant's home

LA VERNE, Calif. (KABC) -- An apartment building manager was caught on video appearing to case a tenant's home, and he's suspected of stealing several expensive items, including her grandfather's Rolex.

Video of the alleged burglary inside Suzy Wrate's La Verne apartment was caught on hidden camera, with the incident lasting about 30 minutes.

She installed the camera after several pieces of jewelry and the high-priced watch went missing, suspecting the apartment manager of being behind it.

Her suspicions were confirmed when she saw 69-year-old Dean May walking around her home.

"I saw our apartment manager coming in our front door, putting on a flashlight, going through various things in my home. He then disappeared into the bedrooms for about 10 minutes," Wrate said. "Everybody in the complex has had packages stolen, and sharing with neighbors, it has become pretty obvious that he was the one responsible."

May was arrested the next day for felony burglary.

Wrate said May and his wife ran the La Verne Woods Apartments for several years. May's wife was not arrested, but she was terminated by the property's owner.

"Personally, I find it hard to believe that she didn't know something," Wrate said.

News of the arrest came as a shock to tenants.

"We thought he was honest. We thought he would go around making sure everything was OK," resident Denise Reyes said.

But, like her neighbors, several items have gone missing from her home and porch.

Wrate and her husband helped some tenants recover some of their stolen goods from the dumpsters.

Wrate, however, wasn't so lucky.

"Me personally, none of my items have been returned," she said.

La Verne police said they had received several burglary calls, but they weren't able to link them to a suspect before. They are investigating whether May is connected to those incidents.

Tenants will have an opportunity to identify some of their stolen items at a town hall meeting scheduled for May 14 at the La Verne Community Center.

The property owner has not responded to requests for comment.