Palo Alto resident scares off burglars breaking into her home

A woman in her 50s scared off apparent burglars from her Palo Alto home Tuesday night, police say.

PALO ALTO — A resident interrupted two suspects who were attempting to burglarize her home Tuesday night, police say.

Alerted by her home security cameras, a woman in her 50s discovered that two suspects had entered her home on Byron Street through an unlocked side yard gate, according to a police news release. She called a police emergency line at about 9:12 p.m. and yelled out “hello” while on the phone. She then heard one of the suspects utter a curse word and both individuals immediately fled the scene.

Upon arrival, officers discovered a shattered sliding-glass door, but no missing items. Police said in a press release that it’s believed the suspects entered the home but fled when they heard the woman’s voice.

Security cameras showed a dark four-door sedan, which police say could be a Dodge Charger, driving southbound on Byron Street at a high-rate of speed just after the incident was reported. Police did not release a detailed description of the suspects, noting only that they appeared to be wearing hoodies with face masks and gloves on.

According to police, the Tuesday burglary was being investigated for a possible connection to an April incident in which a man also interrupted an apparent attempted burglary in his home on Dana Avenue.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call the Palo Alto Police Department’s 24-hour dispatch center at 650-329-2413. Anonymous tips can be e-mailed to paloalto@tipnow.org or sent via text message or voice mail to 650-383-8984.