Burglar Busted After Break-in, Caught on Video

A New Zealand man, who has been a victim of burglary for four times, has finally caught the fifth burglary in the act thanks to the surveillance he installed, social media and the person whom the burglar sold the stolen items to.

Castlecliff, Whanganui resident and homeowner David Hooper told NZ Herald News that he has been burgled about five times since he moved to the area two years ago. Feeling devastated, he thought that this unfortunate incident should stop.

After the fourth burglary, he looked for a store selling surveillance cameras and installed them around his house. He made sure that these don’t only record what happens inside the house, but also let him monitor everything live from his mobile phone.

Mr Hooper was working at Embassy 3 cinema when the burglary took place on a Tuesday night. He checked his house’s surveillance feed at 6:30 P.M. and saw that nothing was going on, so he returned to work. The burglary took place a few minutes before 7P.M.

“Had I waited 20 minutes later, I would have caught him in the act and had the police here,” said Mr Hooper in a statement.

When he checked the feed at 9 P.M., he was surprised to see the damage done to his property. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to go straight home because he had to wait for his shift to end, as he was the only one working at the moment.

Embassy 3 shared the footage of the incident on their Facebook page the following day to help identify the culprit. After 1,200 shares, a man was arrested. The person who bought the stolen goods saw the video and called the police immediately, helping Mr Hooper solve the case.

While surveillance cameras are a good deterrent, they don’t do anything to stop the attempt—unless homeowners catch them in the act. Xpanda Security noted that stopping all possible entry points with security grilles or window screens is still among the most effective ways to stop would-be burglars, whether the property is residential or commercial.