Hidden camera found planted outside of Chino Hills woman's home

A Chino Hills woman was disturbed to learn that a camera disguised as a rock had been planted outside of her home last week.

The camera was planted in the ground across the street from her house on Glen Ridge Drive, leaving her with fear that she's being watched by someone. 

"I think it's really strange. I think it's really scary, because you're supposed to feel safe in your own home and your neighborhood," the woman, who wished not to be identified, said. "But, something like that happens and you really don't know anymore, times have changed."

They believe that the camera was placed on April 29, where it sat for days before being spotted by the woman's neighbor. 

"For some reason he just noticed it was a weird, awkward looking lump of leaves and then when he looked he's like, 'Uh, there's a camera down there,'" the woman said. "It's a camera wrapped in clay to make it look like a rock, attached to a power bank."

The neighbor was able to download an image from the camera that showed the hand that placed it back in late-April. Other neighbors then checked their own security cameras, finding the moments that someone rode up on a scooter to bury the device. 

It's still not immediately clear why the camera was planted, but neighbors and San Bernardino County Sheriff's investigators say that it may have been planted by people planning on burglarizing homes in the area. 

"I can only think of someone trying to case a neighborhood, probably to burglarize someone, but I don't know," the woman said. "We just wanted to get the word out and make sure people are aware of their surroundings. Just because we thought we were safe in our own home and our neighbors thought we were all safe here — apparently you're not."