Burglaries targeting Asian businesses and homes on the rise nationwide
Law enforcement agencies across the country are investigating an alarming rise in burglaries targeting Asian businesses, homes and places of worship, with incidents reported in states including Colorado, New York, Minnesota, Oregon and New Hampshire, ABC News has confirmed.
In Colorado, there have been around 100 reported burglaries of Asian homes across the state this year, according to Denver ABC affiliate KMGH. Darren Weekly, the sheriff of Douglas County, Colorado, where law enforcement is investigating around 14 incidents, told ABC News that the Asian community is believed to be targeted because many are expected to leave "large amounts of money" in their homes, as opposed to depositing the cash in banks.
"The community is furious but also scared at the same time," Lisa Nguyen, the owner of a plaza of Asian-owned businesses in Denver that experienced a burglary, told ABC News.
"A lot of the [Asian] community may have come from countries where communism or various different types of governments existed, which has caused the community culturally to not have a trust in banks," Nguyen said. "It saddens me to see so many people lose their life's savings that they worked so hard for."
Weekly told ABC News that the burglary operations in Colorado are "sophisticated," and involve suspects who are utilizing technology like Wi-Fi jammers to block or otherwise interfere with alarm system signals. Suspects are also conducting their own surveillance, including installing cameras outside the homes of their victims, to ensure that no one is home when the burglars strike, Weekly said.
"Unfortunately, a lot of people are also moving in and out of homes because of these robberies," said Nguyen, who also is the president-elect of the Denver Metro Association of Realtors. She added that one of her real estate client's homes has been burglarized twice since September.
Law enforcement agencies across the country are warning of a rise in burglaries targeting the Asian community. The trend has struck states including New Hampshire, where out-of-state crime rings have been targeting the community, police confirmed to ABC News.
According to Manchester, New Hampshire ABC affiliate WMUR, police in Granite State cities including Londonderry, Gorham and Conway are also investigating a rise in community burglaries targeting Asians.
"I can confirm that Londonderry has had several burglaries where the victims were of Asian descent and appeared to be targeted by an out-of-state organized crime ring," Londonderry police Det. Sgt. Chris Olsen told ABC News. "The victims were either Asian business owners or worked at Asian-owned businesses. We have had approximately three of these burglaries over the past several years; however, this appears to be a common trend in the Northeast. In our cases, large amounts of cash and jewelry were taken."
Echoing Douglas County, Colorado Sheriff Darren Weekly, Olsen said that the suspects in the Londonderry burglaries appear to be using Wi-Fi jammers and could be conducting their own surveillance of their victims to ensure they are not home before breaking, typically stealing jewelry and cash.
While no arrests have been made yet, Olsen said that police have identified a few "persons of interest" in the burglaries while working with other law enforcement agencies around the country.
The problem has also been pervasive this year in Eugene, Oregon, where the Eugene Police Department (EPD) cracked down on a burglary ring targeting Asian business owners, making six arrests in June.
Even so, an EPD spokesperson told ABC News that the burglaries have continued, and many of the victims have been part of the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community.
"We identified a series [or burglaries] that was targeting mainly people who own businesses and that the suspects believe keep cash and valuables at home. Most of the victims have been Asian, but also they have been East Indian, and in one case not from either of those demographics, but they were business owners," the EPD spokesperson said.
Eugene police issued a warning via social media to residents in November, sharing tips for crime prevention and awareness, and have also dedicated a team of officers to investigate those cases, the spokesperson added.
Police in Rochester, Minnesota are also warning residents to be vigilant in the wake of a string of burglaries between Nov. 13 and Dec. 3 that targeted Asians in the community. They are urging anyone with information to come forward.
The Rochester Police Department said in a statement last month that it "received five burglary reports where victims, all Asian, returned at the end of the day to find their houses ransacked and cash, jewelry, passports and other valuables taken."
In Colonie, New York, police are investigating a similar string of burglaries targeting Asian business owners, according to Albany ABC affiliate WTEN.
ABC News requests to the Rochester and Colonie police departments for updates on their investigations were not immediately answered.
The Chinese Community Center of the Capital District of New York – located in Latham, just north of Albany – is urging residents to report anything suspicious. The Center issued a statement on its Facebook page, warning the community that law enforcement has reported three recent Asian-targeted burglaries and saying community leaders "appreciate the help" of the Colonie Police Department.
Meanwhile, the Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs Association of Albany issued a statement last week, sharing safety tips and urging the community to be vigilant.
Nguyen said that in the wake of this nationwide trend, the Asian community is fearful but is coming together and taking extra precautions to be safe.
"Now that the word is getting out about the robberies, the community is coming together and becoming more vigilant in securing their homes and businesses," Nguyen said, adding that she hopes that anyone with information about the burglaries will come forward so that an arrest can be made soon.
