Newport Beach : Police Stakeouts Fail to Capture Cat Burglar

Despite nearly a dozen police stakeouts, an elusive cat burglar who appears to concentrate on the homes of single women continues to elude Newport Beach.

According to Detective Dan Holub of the Newport Beach Police Department’s burglary detail, the thief is wanted for 34 burglaries and six prowling incidents reported since mid-May. In all but six cases, he said, the victims have been women who live alone.

Police have turned up few leads in their efforts to trap the thief, described as 18 to 22 years old, 5 foot 9, with a slender build, collar-length brown hair and an olive complexion, Holub said.

But the stakeouts have not been entirely unproductive, he said. So far, police have detained several other burglary suspects, a suspected cocaine dealer and a man who was arrested for brandishing a firearm.

Although police have not received any reports of sexual assaults associated with the thief, he tried to force one victim into her bedroom before deciding to take her purse instead and used sexually abusive language during another robbery, Holub said.

“Why he chooses women is a mystery to us,” Holub said. “He is apparently more interested in cash than in sexually assaulting the victims.”

However, police have not ruled out the possibility that the man may have sexually assaulted victims who have not reported the crimes, Holub said.

All the thefts have taken place near the beach between 9th and 54th streets. Because of the large number of short-term summer renters in the area, Holub speculated that more burglaries are occurring than are being reported.

“FBI statistics say that only one in four burglary victims report the crimes,” Holub said. “Because of the transient nature of the area, we probably get fewer than that.”

Holub added that many victims unwittingly have helped the burglar by leaving windows and doors unlocked and, in some cases, wide open while they slept.

Holub is asking residents to report any suspicious activities or people matching the thief’s description. Holub added that burglary victims who have not reported the crime should call him at (714) 644-3764, or (714) 644-3717 in the evening.