NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — Residents in one downtown Norfolk apartment complex were shocked to find several of their cars broken into overnight.
Their cars were parked in the Bank Street garage, owned by the city of Norfolk. Residents believe the break-ins happened between 2 a.m. and 5 a.m. Wednesday. Norfolk Police said there were at least 10 reports to police of break-ins at this garage alone.
A lot of the people 10 On Your Side spoke with said nothing was taken from their cars, but their peace of mind is gone.
On top of that, since it’s a holiday weekend, most of them will have to wait a few days to get their windows fixed.
“My roommate came out and he was telling me, ‘Hey, like, you’re going to want to see this,” Seth Hursey said.
Hursey said he came out to his car in the Bank Street parking garage to find shattered glass.
“I mean, they rummaged to the front, [but] luckily, they didn’t get anything from the back,” Hursey said. “But I mean, I had about $20 to $50 that were in the console, which, … they took that out. So, um, pretty unfortunate.”
On the same floor, Alexander Pekala came out to find his front passenger window shattered too.
“I’m very happy to say that my registration, my manual there are perfectly fine,” Pekala said. “I took that. I’m not going to leave it in my car because I can’t get this fixed for another few days, especially with a holiday around the corner. … A lot of places are going to be closed.”
Norfolk Police said that between 5 and 9 a.m. Wednesday, at least 10 reports came in of cars broken into in the Bank Street garage.
Police said there are currently nine larceny from auto reports and one vandalism of vehicle showing on file. They said these investigations are still ongoing.
The garage is city-owned, but nearby apartment complex residents pay a monthly fee to park there.
Xavier Reynolds came out while we were there to find his car was broken into as well.
“I didn’t see nothing on this side, so as soon as I came around, I just seen cigarettes and glass,” Reynolds said. “I opened a door and my glove compartment was open, checked to see if they took anything. I got a watch in there, but they didn’t take that.”
Reynolds said the suspects left these cigarettes behind. The residents said their apartment complex management did send out an email warning them of the break-ins.
They’re encouraging residents to not leave any valuables inside cars, and to report suspicious activity to Norfolk Police.
Hursey said they pay a lot to live there, and hopes something is done soon.
“When I think of downtown Norfolk, you think of something that’s very nice, it’s very lively, something that’s, you know, exciting,” Hursey said. “This is exciting, but in the worst way. So, with all that being said, you’d expect better and I would hope that Norfolk Police tends to figure this out very soon.”
There are cameras in the garage, but it’s unknown if they captured anything at this time. A representative from the city told us they are aware of these incidents and are working with Norfolk Police.
10 On Your Side also asked if the cameras in the garage were on and functioning properly. We are still waiting on a response to that question from the city of Norfolk.
10 On Your Side previously reported on cameras in several downtown Norfolk Parking garages not recording properly.
Later, the city of Norfolk made big security upgrades.
Anyone with information on the break-ins is asked to call the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP or use the P3Tips app.
