Local

Caught on camera: Brazen Sammamish burglars steal thousands in jewelry

SAMMAMISH, Wash. — Surveillance video of a home burglary in Sammamish shows two determined thieves smashing multiple doors to get access to a house while the family was out of town for Christmas.

The thieves got away with thousands of dollars in jewelry.

The homeowners’ front door surveillance camera shows two men trying to open the door by body-slamming it. It doesn’t work, so they try to break the glass door by smashing it with a large clay pot.

That breaks some but not all of the glass. They then try to kick the door open.

That still doesn’t work, and another camera shows the two thieves running around to the back.

In the backyard, the two men appear to scramble, searching for something to break the back door.

They pick up a large rock and throw it at the glass sliding door, smashing it, and this time, they get inside.

The Stacey family was on the road driving home from Leavenworth on Friday after celebrating Christmas with family when they saw the break-in on their cameras.

“Mostly frustration and anger. To watch somebody aggressively trying to get into your home - pretty upsetting. But all we could do was keep going,” said Heather Stacey.

The video shows the thieves were inside the house for about five minutes.

At one point, you hear one of the men saying, “Where's everything at, dawg?”

They ended up stealing several thousand dollars’ worth of jewelry - much of it with sentimental value.

“Most of the jewelry was given to me as a present from my husband or my son. There were a few antique pieces from family members,” Stacey said.

And the thieves took at least one present.

“On the way out the door, they grabbed a Yeti cooler that was a Christmas present in the living room,” Stacey said.

The Staceys say the burglars must’ve been watching to know they weren't home.

The two men pulled up in the driveway Friday, Dec. 27, around 1 p.m. in what looks like a white construction truck with a flatbed and parked it at the end of the driveway

The thieves were also wearing heavy-duty clothing.

The men appeared to ignore most items - including packages on the porch and technology inside - but went straight for the jewelry.

The Staceys plan to further upgrade their security.

Meanwhile, they're asking for your help to identify the two men in the video and are asking you to watch out.

“These guys were aggressive. They came in and destroyed the house to get in,” Stacey said. “I don't want it to happen to somebody else.

You’re asked to call Sammamish police if you know anything about the crime.