Hoffman Estates family turns to Facebook to help identify home burglars
CHICAGO (FOX 32 News) - It’s a scary experience for any homeowner: thieves break in and steal your most prized, personal belongings.
It happened to a Hoffman Estates family, and despite their state of the art security system, police have few clues to go on.
So, the family has launched a Facebook page to help catch the crooks.
A home security system captured the moment two men broke into a house in Hoffman Estates. One of the burglars can be seen casually making his way from room to room while talking on the phone.
The home owner, who has asked not to be identified, was out of the house at the time but arrived to find her front door open and the window broken. In a panic, she called her brother who described to FOX 32 her emotional state.
"The invasion of her home, she's lost that sanctity, so very emotional...basically brought her to tears,” said Mike Korzen.
The crooks spent nearly a half hour inside the home, eventually making off with jewelry and other personal possessions. They even stole a suitcase that they used to fill with the loot.
Video shows one of the burglars opening the front door, looking to see if the coast is clear and then walking out of the house. The crooks came and go, leaving few clues for police to make an identification.
"They wore gloves, so there's no DNA evidence, there's no fingerprints, that video is the only evidence we have,” police said.
So, after speaking with police, Korzen and his sister decided to turn to social media to help nab the bad guys. They launched the "Find Thieving Dirtbags" page on Facebook, and in just a day the response has been overwhelming with thousands of hits on the page, while a separate ad has seen more than 750 unique hits.
It’s a social media investment that’s been well worth the time and money.
"It's been shown time and time again that this is the fastest way to communicate and reach people today...the news is still relevant...we're here today...but even FOX News you're on Facebook and Twitter...you're using that product as well.”
FOX 32 spoke with police in Hoffman Estates and they declined to comment on the investigation, although the family tells us they were totally supportive of their decision to create that Facebook page.