GILBERT, AZ – Detectives are investigating a burglary after $30,000 was stolen in an unusual way from a Gilbert family’s home.
Last week, Lorri and her husband Brandon Craig took their children for a family outing at the lake when Brandon's cell phone rang.
"It was an agent who said she wanted to show the house and we granted permission for them to come and use their lock-box key to enter the home," said Brandon. "It just seemed like perfect timing, we were out of the house and it was no problem."
"We typically leave, whether it's going down the street or whatever, but I like to give people privacy when they are with their realtor to take a look and talk openly," Lorri said while sitting in her kitchen.
The Craigs say the electronic lock-box on their home used by real estate agents is only accessible by agents with a special electronic key which activates the box, revealing the key to the front door. It was used by the criminals.
"So we returned home later that day and everything seemed normal, except the front door was unlocked, so I thought that was odd," Brandon said.
The Craigs then called the agent to notify them that they had left their front door unlocked.
"I didn't get an answer or even a recording to leave a message, which was really strange," said Brandon.
After a long day, the Craigs put their children to bed and the family went to sleep.
"I then woke up and noticed several things missing," Lorri said. "The first thing was my wedding ring."
Brandon has just bought Lorri a new ring to celebrate their 15th wedding anniversary.
"So my new ring was gone and my original wedding ring," said Lorri.
Other jewelry was missing as well, along with an envelope of cash.
"We had the envelope full of cash for family vacation money that was set aside, it was all hidden," said Lorri.
Turns out, the person, posing as a real estate agent was actually a burglar who went through the Craigs' home stealing cash and jewelry.
"They even took my children's piggy banks, money my kids worked hard for, that's not right," said Brandon.
It's unknown how long the criminals were in the home, but the Craigs believe it could have been quite some time since they were able to find the hidden items.
The home has been on the market for about three months and quite a few potential buyers have toured the house.
The family had never encountered any problems.
Gilbert detectives are investigating the crime and are waiting on lab results from extensive work officers did at the home.
"There was no damage or anything to the lock-box, it wasn't tampered with at all, so the person had one of those real estate electronic keys to open the box," Brandon said.
The Craigs say they have talked with their children about the situation and are now using the situation as a learning experience for the entire family.
"We also hope others can learn from what we're going through," said Brandon.
"I will never show our home again without our own real estate agent here," Lorri said.
Gilbert investigators confirm the Craigs’ loss is estimated at $30,000 in cash and jewelry.
Despite the loss and frustration, Brandon says he actually has sympathy for the burglars who posed as a real estate agent.
"I feel bad for the people, for them to have to scheme and do that to make a living is unfortunate," said Brandon. "I've also learned not to trust the way the home-selling system is set up, to not trust the system because the system has been compromised."
Several months ago, there were several similar incidents in Chandler.
In the Chandler cases, criminals posed as potential home buyers and real estate agents to gain access to homes. In at least one case, the electronic lock-box was used to obtain the front door key.
The Craigs say after checking with their insurance company, their losses are not covered.
"The rings and cash are all a loss, but we've all learned and we'll replace it," said Brandon.
It is unknown if the Gilbert case is connected to the incidents in Chandler.
