PHOENIX — Three people were caught on video breaking into cars in a North Phoenix neighborhood. One of the victims is putting up his own cash reward in hopes of catching the thieves.
“When you're wearing a ski mask, you're stealing knives, you're one step away from violent crimes,” said Jim, a homeowner wanting ABC15 to use only his first name.
This week, outside Jim’s home, security cameras caught two people stealing from cars. He says two were going through the cars and one other was with a getaway car.
"The whole thing was under a minute. They ran out. They checked my neighbors' doors. They checked the car doors at my house,” added Jim.
Unfortunately, one of the cars in Jim's driveway near 52nd Street and Greenway Road was unlocked.
"I noticed, when I woke up in the morning, there were some things strewn about in the car,” added Jim.
Jim looked inside the car and discovered a number of things including an electric car charger and a hunting knife were taken.
"That's a little bit scary because you start to think, well gosh, are they going to use that? Fortunately, it wasn't a firearm. But, are they going to use the knife in another crime,” added Jim.
Jim pulled images from the surveillance video showing one person on camera entering a car and wearing a black mask. He shared another person between cars wearing an orange mask.
He's even gotten pictures of someone's shoes and a limited edition t-shirt he believes might be recognizable.
"They did not steal things of great value, but they stole peace of mind. It is hard to get your peace of mind back when something like that happens,” added Jim.
Jim has spent a good amount of time looking over video, snipping images and talking to police. He hopes doing that and offering a $500 reward will help officers catch the people seen on his surveillance video.
"This whole neighborhood is concerned. So, people want to see these people at least held accountable and so we can have peace of mind."
