Child Home Alone Spots Burglar In Sister's Room
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DANIA BEACH (CBSMiami) – Authorities are looking for man who burglarized a Dania Beach home while a 12-year-old child was inside the home alone.
The boy told detectives he heard a knock on the front door but refused to answer it.
"He was very brave. We are very proud of him because he did exactly what we told him to do," the child's mother, who asked that her name not be used, said.
She said she, her husband and teenaged daughter had left the house for a few hours that morning, leaving the 12-year-old in his bedroom.
The burglar decided to go through another entrance.
Security video shows the heavy-set man climbing in through the kitchen window of the home in broad daylight on July 26th.
He quickly looks around before heading straight for what looks like an electronic device he then packs into a dark-colored backpack.
He is then seen walking into another room of the home. All this as the family's 12-year-old son was home alone.
"It's not a situation you want your son in. He was very scared," the mother said.
The boy told deputies he saw the burglar in his sister's room so he ran to the bathroom and hid. The intruder saw the boy in the bathroom and ordered him to stay there, not knowing the child had a cellphone.
"He was with 911 all the time. He was talking to them the whole time, explaining to them what was going on in the house," the mother said.
In all, the reportedly got away with about $1,000 worth of electronics, jewelry and the family's passports among other items listed in the police report.
The child's mother said her son is still traumatized by the episode, and the family of four feels a deep sense of violation.
"Scare my son, put my son in that situation? Material things are material things, but my son in that situation is something we are never going to forget," the mom said.
Police are using the video, asking if anyone recognizes the culprit.
The suspect is described as a heavyset black male in his 20s. He has short black hair and a black goatee. He wore a white T-shirt, black shorts and sneakers.
Anyone with information is urged to call Broward County Crime Stoppers at (954) 493- TIPS. You may be eligible for a $3,000 reward.