Police: Evesham Burglars Knocked On Resident's Doors In Broad Daylight Before Breaking In
EVESHAM TOWNSHIP, NJ (CBS) - A pried-open sliding glass door, a pushed in air conditioning unit…these are just some of the ways burglars have accessed 20 Evesham Township homes and even apartment complexes between May 27th and July 4th. The burglars aren't sneaking around under the cover of darkness either-- police say they're knocking on the door in broad daylight and hoping no one answers.
"It was pretty persistent knocking and banging on the door," says Sanctuary home owner Tim Steliga. He says a man pretending to be a contractor knocked on his door on Monday, the 4th of July holiday.
"'I'm on a service call is what he said.' He was like, 'I'm at the wrong address or something,'" Steliga says the man told him.
Robin Rieger reports...
Steliga had a feeling that the man outside was suspicious and called police, who then responded to a burglary alarm nearby.
"Police located a house that was broken into. They used information on the suspicious person, call broadcast it, and Vorhees police located the vehicle," Evesham Township Police Lieutenant Walt Miller explains.
Miller says police charged 43-year-old Edward Kouser, of Sicklerville, and 40-year-old Louis Caruso, of Waterford, with the burglary of one of Steliga's neighbors. Police are investigating whether the pair can be connected to the other burglaries. A gun was recovered in their car.
"We believe the handgun was stolen in an unrelated burglary in Camden County; that's being investigated now," says Miller.
Miller says if you are on vacation, make your home look lived in by stopping the papers and mail and leaving lights on. He also says to ask your neighbors to check on your residence while you're gone.
Reported by Robin Rieger, CBS3
