INDIANAPOLIS — A home invasion on the southeast side of Indianapolis was all caught on camera. Armed robbers broke into the house overnight while the family was home.
A neighbor told RTV6 he heard it all happen. He saw a car pull up with five men inside, ask each other, "which house are we going to hit?" They got their guns and broke into the family's home.
"They came in, they said, 'don't move, show me your hands.' One of them immediately came over to me and started just grabbing my phone off my desk, my wallet," Josh Smith, whose home was broken into, said.
Three men — caught on a neighbor's surveillance camera — dressed in all black, broke into Smith's home near Acton and Maze Roads while he, his wife, two kids, and mother-in-law were all inside.
"People look for opportunities. Easy opportunities," Smith said. "They saw the garage door up. It was easy for them just to walk right in."
Police say they broke in through the garage door that was accidentally left open. Two others waited outside while the three ravaged through the home, stealing mostly electronics: phones, an iPad and an Xbox.
"They had the hoodies drawn down real tight around her face so really you can only see their eyes and just a little bit of their nose," Smith described.
"Wife and kids were asleep in the bedroom, but the dogs were in there with them. We have a gate to keep the dogs either in or out depending on what we want," Smith said. "And they saw the dogs, and they didn't want to go in there, so that was kind of lucky."
No one was hurt but shaken, nonetheless.
"The video is recorded, so we were able to get that and use that for investigatory purposes," Sgt. Grace Sibley, with Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, said. "It's just a general deterrent I would say in the neighborhood."
IMPD says surveillance cameras or "ring" doorbell cameras are beneficial when trying to catch these criminals.
Neighborhood crime watch and Facebook groups also help to let people know if they see anything suspicious in the area.
"Get to know your neighbors. If you make any large purchases, break it down. The packaging, throw that away. Make sure that's not sitting on the street curb," Sgt. Sibley said.
The family says they are double-checking their locks garage doors now. They are also looking at getting a security system back in place.
If you know anything about this robbery or recognize the suspects, call Crime Stoppers at 317-262-TIPS.
