WINTER PARK, Fla. – Winter Park resident Lee Ann Diloreto was shocked when she opened her car door earlier this month.
"You just feel violated in a way. I mean they are in your personal space," Diloreto said. "The console was open as well as the glove compartment and then there were papers just all over the front seat and then out onto the grass and onto the driveway."
Diloreto was not alone.
Since Feb. 5, there have been at least half a dozen reports of cars, carports or sheds broken into along about a mile-and-a-half stretch in Diloreto's neighborhood, just a few blocks off Lakemont Avenue.
In one break-in, prescription pills were stolen. In another, a GPS.
"I think it's really just a crime of opportunity," said Sgt. Jamie Loomis of the Winter Park Police Department.
Winter Park police believe the crimes were committed by the same person or persons.
"If they're in a certain neighborhood then they will just start at one house and start trying doors and looking in windows and go all the way down the line until they either get spooked or somebody sees them or they get what they want," Loomis said.
While police were responding to the car break-ins, they received another call from a homeowner on Balmoral Road, just one block over. A utility shed had been broken into, but nothing was stolen.
"If you have anything unsecured in a carport, secure it," Loomis said. "If you have a storage shed, make sure that it's secured. If your vehicle is there, lock it up. Don't leave anything at all in your vehicle. Don't leave anything that a bad guy can look in and think is tempting."
Police say even hiding your valuables under a towel, leaving power cords visible or suction cup rings on your windshield, can be tempting to criminals.
"You might feel safe because you are in a good neighborhood or what have you, but I think we just all have to remember that you're not really safe anywhere," Diloreto said. "You have to kind of take your own precautions."
In all of these break-ins, it appears the doors were left unlocked, creating a perfect opportunity for thieves.
No arrests have been made.
If you see or hear of crime in your neighborhood, email Local 6 News reporter Lisa Bell at lbell@wkmg.com.