Michigan's Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard warned that Chilean gangs are breaking into luxury homes again, dealing heavy blows to law enforcement and, of course, the victims of these burglaries.
In statements collected by the Fox 2 network, Bouchard revealed that, in recent days, they detected very similar burglaries in Oakland that coincide with the pattern of crimes carried out by these Chilean gangs.
"Clearly, I think they're back," Bouchard warned. "In the last three or four days, we've had a number of super, super similar what we call M.O.'s."
"The home is empty - very large upscale homes - backed up to areas with little, or no observation from neighbors," continued the sheriff, who also acknowledged that the gangs are hitting the authorities hard.
"The Chilean gangs have been hitting us very hard," he said. "Cash, jewelry, very high end purses - that's pretty much the target."
According to Fox 2, properties that Chilean gangs may target usually overlook forests or golf courses where the team of thieves can go unnoticed.
Among the largest thefts was that of a single home, where $800,000 in jewelry and cash was stolen.
"They are super well-trained when they get here - highly organized. They look like ninjas they're all masked up, gloves - they each have a backpack with their particular set of tools for their job in the burglary," said Bouchard.
A couple days ago I put out the alert that the high-end home burglars are back in Oakland County. They hit again last night. This story gives some of the background and what to look for. Again, call if you see something suspicious. https://t.co/UYy7lktfy0
— Mike Bouchard (@MikeJBouchard) March 30, 2024
The sheriff also warned property owners that gangs are targeting homes whose occupants are on vacation. Therefore, he expressly recommended limiting exposure on social media to avoid, as much as possible, being the target of these Chilean gangs.
According to the sheriff, the gangs even have important technology to circumvent security systems.
For example, he commented that, in some cases, Chilean gangs use a wireless alarm jammer.
In that sense, Bouchard recommended hardwiring a home's alarm system and ensuring it remains on.
