Fairfield Co. Town Sees Spike In Break-Ins

Fairfield County residents were on edge on Monday after a string of break-ins.

According to police, Baltimore has seen 10 break-ins in a week, which officials said was unusual for the village north of Lancaster, 10TV’s Glenn McEntyre reported.

“We’ve experienced a flurry of burglaries, and these are home-invasion types, where people go in while people are there, middle of the night,” Baltimore police Chief Michael Tussey said.

Tussey said the break-ins have come in clusters -- five last week and five on Monday.

“While people are inside asleep, as a matter of fact, in one case, we had two young children who their mother, as a treat, had let them sleep on the couch that night, and the purse was taken less than six feet from where they were on the couch.”

Karen Billingsley said that her home was broken into, McEntyre reported.

“It’s just really scary,” Billingsley said. “You really feel like you’ve been violated.”

Billingsley said that she did not know her home had been broken into until she was ready to leave for work and realized her purse was missing. She said that she had set her purse on the kitchen counter, which was visible through a window.

“There has been a wallet or purse in plain view that they can see through a window,” Tussey said.

Police said that they think the break-ins are connected and extend beyond Baltimore.

“We’re convinced that these are people who travel,” Tussey said. “’We’re going to hit this town. Things are getting a little hot, we’re going to go away. We’ll be back once we make the circuit.’ (They) come back to that same town and commit these acts again.”

Billingsley said that she thinks the thief or thieves entered her house through the garage door, which she had left cracked for her cat.

“It’s just a very uncomfortable feeling, and I’m sure when I go to bed tonight, I’m going to think about that,” Billingsley said.

Baltimore police said that they planned to meet with authorities in Perry County, where there have been 18 similar incidents.

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