Four car burglaries reported at Avenue of Arts complex

Police responded Tuesday morning to four car burglaries at an expansive apartment complex at Sunflower Avenue and Avenue of the Arts in Costa Mesa.

A burglar entered the covered parking lot of the 3400 Avenue of the Arts Apartments and smashed windows to get into the vehicles, according to Costa Mesa police.

“Someone went through there and ripped anything of value out of the cars,” Sgt. Matt Grimmond said.

In one instance, the burglar smashed a car’s passenger window to steal video games lying in plain sight.

The other three burglaries followed the same basic pattern, Grimmond said.

Police did not specify a monetary value for the loss and damage.

The sergeant said this is a good reminder to lock car doors and not leave any valuables visible inside vehicles, especially around the holidays.

“You leave your purse on the seat of the car, guess what, they smash the window and they take the stuff,” Grimmond said.

— Jeremiah Dobruck

Twitter: @jeremiahdobruck