JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – David Terry thought his home and neighborhood in Arlington were safe until he became a victim of crime Tuesday.
Terry and his family live off Sprinkle Drive. Six other homes in the area were also burglarized Tuesday while the homeowners were at work.
"You work your tail off and then you have this happen," said Terry. "They went through the screen right here and then around the house and then back to the other side of the house over there. Then there's a door on the side there and that's how they came in and busted the door right there."
The robbers took the Terry family's flat screen TV, Wii system, a jug full of change and Mrs. Terry's jewelry.
"She's pretty devastated. She's still in shock and everything and she was pretty hurt about it," said Terry.
Channel 4 Crime Analyst Ken Jefferson said this rash of break-ins in Arlington is a crime of opportunity.
"We sometimes take bad guys for granted as being dumb and stupid, but they carefully plot out where they want to hit and where they want to go inside a home," said Jefferson.
In most of these burglaries, the crooks hit the homes during the day and broke in through the back of the home. That's something Jefferson said was planned.
"You can believe that the burglars who are committing these crimes in this particular area have put this place under surveillance. They've watched the tendencies of the people they know when they're coming and going, 98% of when they're not at home, and that's when they're going to hit," said Jefferson.
Terry said he's now going to put his home under surveillance. He said he is planning to install a security system in his home to prevent further burglaries.
For now, Terry said he's just grateful his family is okay.
"Good thing nobody was home at the time and nobody got hurt. Things can be replaced, but you can't replace a life," said Terry.