Burglar Hits Trabuco Mesa Neighborhood

After a few weeks of quiet, another home has been knocked off in a Rancho Santa Margarita neighborhood that has become popular for burglaries.

The area near Trabuco Mesa Elementary School was the site of the most recent incident, not far from burglaries over the past three months on Mandevilla and Ulmaria. In both those incidents, jewels were among the items stolen.

The incident Thursday on Via Gardenia, like the others, took place when the resident was away from home.

Lt. Brian Schmutz, chief of police services in Rancho Santa Margarita, said he has assigned additional resources to the ongoing string of residential burglaries.

According to the blotter of the Orange County Sheriff's Department, a victim contacted police at 2:51 p.m., and informed them that the home had been burgled. The caller was unsure if the perpetrator was still in the home and requested a deputy perform a walk-through to clear the residence.

The victim had been away from his home for about two hours. The blotter did not indicate what items were stolen.