Burglars have targeted several vacation rentals and second homes in the Vallecito area.
Because the homeowners are seasonal residents, the crimes have gone unreported for an undetermined amount of time, according to the La Plata County Sheriff’s Office.
Now that seasonal residents are returning for the summer, they’re noticing the damage.
“Everyone is reporting them all at once,” Dan Bender, spokesman for the sheriff’s office, said Wednesday.
Part-time residents will return for the season and notice their homes have been broken into, he said. Unfortunately, the time frame they give for when the incident could have occurred is a period of several months.
Bender confirmed that there has not been a spree of break-ins, just that seasonal residents are starting to return for the summer and are now reporting them.
Linda Tikalsky, a full-time Vallecito resident, said several burglaries occurred on side roads off County Road 500, north of the reservoir. She’s counted three within a three-month period, she said.
The neighborhood also has an unofficial neighborhood watch with residents monitoring vacant houses, at least the ones that they can easily see, she said.
Bender encourages residents to keep a vigilant eye on their neighborhoods and form a neighborhood watch of some sort. Also, sheriff deputies patrol the area when possible.
To report a break-in, call the dispatch center at 385-2900.
vguthrie@durangoherald.com
