Police are on boats, on horseback and in the air to fight a surge in Valley home burglaries

High-visibility police, mounted police, and air support are being deployed over the San Fernando Valley after a rash of home burglaries in the area, with nine burglaries in a 10-day period.

“We all have zero tolerance for what is happening and what has been happening in the Valley,” said Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass during a press conference Monday afternoon. “Today, we are once again deploying resources and taking serious action to stop these latest burglaries and arrest the perpetrators.”

Bass on Friday ordered police to increase patrols along Ventura Boulevard. After his announcement, there were two more burglaries in the area.

On Monday, the mayor appeared alongside LA Police Chief Jim McDonnell, giving an update on the increased vigilance.

Bass and McDonnell said they hope the increased police presence will prevent a rash of burglaries and arrests, but they also stressed that burglaries in the area have decreased throughout the year.

Burglaries in the Valley Bureau year to date are down 48% compared to last year, according to McDonnell.

“I understand that if you are the victim of a burglary, the most important thing is that your police department is doing everything they can to keep you safe,” said McDonnell.

Besides high-visibility patrols and aerial support, the department will add special forces and detectives, the police chief said.

McDonnell said many of those resources will come from the Metro Division of the LA Police Department. He added that it is not clear how long the additional services will remain in the area, saying that they can be replaced if needed in the city of LA or moved to another assignment as needed.

“To be able to tell you now how long it will be – two weeks, four weeks – I can’t because it will depend,” McDonnell said. “If we’re pulled over by other crime problems, especially violent crime, that’s going to affect our ability to maintain the level of resources we have in the long term.”

Although they took a long time, McDonnell said the department is hopeful that increased resources will help arrests.

“Despite budget constraints and resource challenges,” McDonnell said, “we are fighting, tracking and arresting these burglars with all our strength and resources.”

Monday’s announcement came shortly after Bass released a $14.9-billion 2026-27 budget that called for the hiring of 510 officers, just enough to maintain the department’s staffing levels and cover retirements and resignations.

“We need enough officers to act quickly and strategically when criminal methods emerge,” Bass said.

In recent burglaries in Sigodini, some of the burglaries occurred within a kilometer of each other, while others were reported to have occurred within minutes of each other.

As part of the order, the LAPD plans to use mobile number plates in high-risk areas and hold weekly burglary meetings with detectives.

The first known incident is believed to have occurred on April 10 in the 13000 block of Davana Terrace in Sherman Oaks, but was reported to police the next day. It is reported that the burglars were wearing all black clothes during the robbery.

The next day, LAPD officials said, the resident was attacked when he encountered two or three robbers at his home.

Police were called to the 7100 block of Macapa Drive in Hollywood Hills at 9:30 p.m., where a resident reported a burglary. They were reportedly wearing gray hoodies and black pants, and fled in a gray Hyundai, LA police officer Charles Miller told The Times.

A third burglary was reported Tuesday in the 11700 block of Hesby Street in Valley Village at 8:30 p.m., and less than an hour later, police were called to another burglary in the 12700 block of Hatteras Street, which is one and a half miles away.

In both cases, the burglars were gone by the time the police arrived.

Criminals in gray clothing are also believed to be responsible for the incident that occurred in the 6800 block of Vanscoy Avenue in Valley Glen on Wednesday. That same day, police also responded to the 12600 block of Herron Street in Sylmar, where burglars broke through a back door to gain entry.

On Thursday, three men wearing dark clothing and masks broke into a home in the 11900 block of Wood Ranch Road.

In Toluca Lake on Saturday night, burglars broke open a window on the second floor of a home in the 4900 block of Strohm Avenue. Hours later, at 3:30 a.m., LAPD officers were called to the 3100 block of Lake Hollywood Drive for another burglary, the ninth known incident in ten days.

No connection has been determined between the burglaries, but their proximity and the short time between the incidents has raised concerns among city officials.

On Monday, McDonnell said patterns in some of the incidents were noted by detectives and police.

“These are high-quality, well-organized workers, some of whom are from other countries,” McDonnell said. “Cases like this require patience, time and, often, extensive follow-up.”

The department encountered a group of gangs in South Los Angeles who have committed similar burglaries, as well as operatives in South America, McDonnell said.

Some of the workers displayed similar tactics, he said, such as placing video cameras in front of houses to determine when residents were away, using jammers to disrupt Wi-Fi-based security systems and cameras, and using ladders to enter houses through second-level rooms.

The staff said they tend to identify high-quality bags, safes that are not connected to the floor, money, guns and anything that can be sold quickly.