SURFSIDE, Fla. . – Local 10 News heard from a woman in an exclusive interview Thursday who said she caught a man trying to break inside her car three times last week in Surfside.
“As I looked down, the gentleman was behind my car (and) we locked eyes,” the woman said. “He was wearing a ski mask.”
The woman said the masked thief attempted to steal her car right out of her driveway on Saturday in broad daylight when families in the area were seen walking to and from church or synagogue.
“The gentleman left, and as I had 911 on the phone, my husband said he came back, turned back around, and got out of the car,” she said.
The victim’s husband wished to remain unidentified but expressed his concern for the community’s safety.
“In broad daylight to be wearing a ski mask on Saturday in Surfside, where there’s people walking up and down the streets, children, people going to temple, events— it’s really crazy,” he said.”Part of the reason we live here is because it’s safe. Now, it doesn’t feel safe.”
It’s yet another case of masked bandits trying to steal cars.
Local 10 News obtained exclusive video Tuesday of a pair of brazen thieves attempting to steal a truck in Bay Harbor Islands last month.
According to Bay Harbor Islands police, it happened around 3 p.m. on Sept. 21.
The newly obtained video shows a Mercedes Benz pulling up in front of a driveway in the area and waiting until a Town of Bay Harbor Islands truck passes them before the crook gets out of the vehicle.
After exiting the Mercedes, the crook, who appeared to be wearing white gloves, looked inside the truck and tried to pull the door handle, but the vehicle’s doors were locked.
Police said the driver of the Mercedes was also trying to get into other cars in the area.
It all happened while someone was power washing the street adjacent to where the truck was parked.
Authorities said the crooks got away with nothing, but the video is important for police not only in Bay Harbor Islands but other jurisdictions.
Local 10 News reported on a car theft just over a week ago after the owner of a rare-eye-catching purple limited-edition Rolls-Royce with Florida tag PUPSK used an aerial banner to offer a reward for information after it was stolen in North Miami last month.
Bob Benyo, the president of Aerial Banners, said the “very special” car, with an estimated value of over $200,000, has plenty of sentimental value too.
“It was an anniversary gift to my wife. She deserved it. She’s the best wife on the planet,” Benyo told Local 10 News last month. “She is devastated that someone was in our house and took her car.”
Benyo thinks the crooks likely cloned one of their clickers and followed his wife and their kids home at about 3 p.m., on Sept. 21.
Surveillance video shows the driver of a silver Mercedes Benz arriving with two crooks who ran up his driveway. It took them nearly 30 seconds to take off with the car — all while the mailman was nearby.
Police have connected the Bay Harbor Islands and the North Miami case. But authorities said the Surfside case has a different getaway car and police can’t confirm the same suspects are involved.
The increased rate of car thefts has left many South Florida residents concerned.
Anyone with information on any of these cases is urged to call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-8477.