Arapahoe Co.’s luxury homes target of ‘dinner theft’ trend: Sheriff

At least nine multi-million dollar homes in Arapahoe County have been targeted as part of a “unique” burglary trend spanning multiple states, according to local law enforcement.

Destination residences are luxury homes that back up to open spaces such as green belts, trails and golf courses, or have dense tree cover on the property. Law enforcement says masked thieves break into homes between 5pm and 8pm when the homeowners are not around, which is why these crimes are called “dinner theft.”

The alleged dinner thieves stole nearly $1 million worth of items such as cash, jewelry and luxury purses, according to Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office and Cherry Hills Village investigators who discussed the crime trend Thursday.

Investigators said burglars attacked four homes in Cherry Hills Village, two in Littleton, one in Columbine Valley and two in unincorporated Arapahoe County.

Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office

They said suspects often show up in groups in a stolen car and are dropped off at a distance, then enter homes on foot through the back door.

Arapahoe County officials said Thursday that similar cases are being investigated in Arizona, where 138 burglaries were reported in Scottsdale alone. Crimes following the same distinctive pattern have also been reported in California, Florida, New York, Delaware and Ohio, they said.

Law enforcement officials said in most of the cases the suspects were South Americans who came to the United States on visas. No suspect descriptions were known for the Arapahoe County incidents, but police officers shared several home surveillance images of masked individuals allegedly involved in some of the incidents.

Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office

Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office

“What we’re trying to do is take a proactive approach to this,” said Sgt. Brett Cohn, Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office. “We want to raise public awareness. We want the public to know what’s going on, so you can understand what we’re dealing with, so you can use our information to protect yourself and your neighbors.

In a news release issued Thursday, law enforcement gave homeowners some tips:

• When you leave your home, lock all your doors, close your windows, and set your alarms.
• Leave the lights on or use automatic timers to make your home look occupied and difficult to break into.
• Install motion sensor lights outdoors to illuminate dark areas.
• Consider purchasing exterior and interior cameras. Some cameras allow you to report crimes to the police.
• Consider installing shatterproof window film to prevent criminals from breaking the glass.
• Be suspicious of people hanging around your house. If something looks suspicious, trust your instincts and call the police.
• Join a neighborhood watch group and keep an eye on your neighbors.