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Three more break-ins brings the total to eight burglaries or attempted burglaries in the Tabb area of York County since July 17.

Capt. Troy Lyons with the York-Poquoson Sheriff’s Office said the increase in crime is highly irregular for the area.

“We can’t say that they are all related,” Lyons said. “We are treating them as such.”

In two of the latest incidents, the homeowners were away and the break-in was reported by a neighbor.

On Sunday, a neighbor on the 200 block of Potter Lane in the Hawks Landing subdivision near Coventry called the sheriff’s office after finding a window screen on his neighbor’s porch and a back window broken.

The neighbor told police that his dog had been barking at something outside around 11:30 p.m. Saturday, but didn’t think anything of it at the time.

Lyons said the homeowners are still out of town, so police don’t know if anything was taken.

Also Sunday, a homeowner on the 200 block of Glebe Spring Lane in Taylor Farms reported that around 4:25 a.m. a brick was thrown through a dining room window.

Another break-in was reported last week is also thought to be part of the same string of crimes, Lyons said. A resident on the 200 block of Pamlico Run in the Running Man subdivision noticed a ladder leaning against a neighbor’s house Wednesday, but knew the neighbor was out of town. The called police around 8:45 p.m. when he saw the back door was open.

Entry was gained through a second floor, unlocked window, Lyons said.

Two laptops, two iPads and two flat screens were reported missing.

Lyons said whether the resident is home or not there are some general precautions to deter burglars:

Put lights on a timer throughout the house.

Make sure all windows and doors are secure.

Let neighbors know when you’re out of town and when you’ll be home.

Report suspicious behavior or noise immediately.

The Sheriff’s Office has a house check program that residents who are going on vacation can sign up for by calling 757-890-3621 or filling out this form: www.yorkcounty.gov/Portals/0/sheriff/vacation_house_check.pdf.

“One common denominator is that it took a little bit of time before they called 911,” Lyons said. “We would rather get there and find out it was the dog that knocked over something. The quicker we get there, the better chance we have of finding the person.”

Lyons said he discourages any homeowners from confronting an intruder.

“Call us right away,” he said.

Previously:

A recent rash of nighttime break-ins in Tabb have happened while residents were at home, and in some cases asleep, according to the York-Poquoson Sheriff’s Office.

The latest incident happened at about 1 a.m. Wednesday when a resident says she heard a noise downstairs in her home in the 100 block of Tuckahoe Trace in the Running Man subdivision. She told officers she went to check on her kids, who were sleep, and then went back to bed only to hear glass breaking a short time later.

She told officers she called out, went to wake her visiting parents and then called 911. She said she heard more glass breaking and heard someone running, then cars speeding off, police explained in a news release.

A neighbor, who heard the commotion, looked outside and saw several people with flashlights running toward a light green SUV or crossover-type vehicle and a dark sedan with a loud muffler.

The would-be burglars were hollering, “Go, go, go,” the release states.

The windows to the right and left of the front door were broken and a brick was found on the porch and in the living room. Another window on the side garage door entrance also was broken, the release states. Nothing was reported missing.

On Monday, a resident of the Greenlands subdivision said she was awakened by the sound of glass breaking at about 2:30 a.m. at her home in the 400 block of Blevins Run.

This resident told police she thought it was a dream, so she waited several minutes until she heard someone walking inside the house before she called 911. She told officers she opened the bedroom door and called out and then heard someone run out of the house. She heard a vehicle with a loud muffler start and leave the area, the release states.

A window next to the door had been broken with a pipe wrench, which was still lodged in the window, according to the sheriff’s office. A black Mag-Lite flashlight and a small fire extinguisher were lying on the ground next to the open side garage door.

While canvassing the neighborhood, a blue purse was found in the flower bed of the house next door, the release states. The victim’s vehicle parked in the driveway also appeared to have been rummaged through. A cordless drill was missing from the garage, it states.

Also on Monday, a resident in the 100 Block of Militia Court in the Patriot Village subdivision, told officers his son was in an upstairs bedroom when he heard glass breaking. The incident happened at about 1 a.m., according to the sheriff’s office.

When he went downstairs, he said a brick had been thrown through the picture window of the house. No one went inside the house. The incident is similar to other burglaries because a brick was used to break a window, according to the release.

On July 26, a resident in the 100 Block of Lilburne Way in the Lilburne Meadows section of Coventry, told officers he was in his garage when he heard someone trying to open the garage door. The incident happened at about 1:45 a.m., according to the sheriff’s office.

The resident told officers he went into his house to call 911 and heard the alarm on his vehicle, which was parked in the driveway. He looked outside and saw someone running down the street. This was an attempted burglary, and nothing was taken, the release says.

The first incident was reported to have occurred at about 12:30 a.m. July 17 at a home in the 400 block of Birkdale Court in the Royal Colven section of Kiln Creek.

The resident was inside a bedroom when someone entered the house by forcing the back door open. The male suspect, described as having curly hair, wearing red sweat pants and a black T-shirt, stole an iPad from the residence, the release states.

Witnesses told officers they saw several males running from the residence and leaving in a white, four-door car, possibly a Honda.

The sheriff’s office is urging residents to call 911 as soon as you think you hear glass breaking, suspicious noises or someone possibly in your home, especially at night.

Anyone with information regarding these crimes or any other crime is asked to call the anonymous Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.