A Lone Tree, Colorado, resident found a camouflaged camera hidden in a bush in their neighborhood, prompting a local law enforcement investigation. Authorities believe the hidden camera was used to stake out a specific house for a potential burglary attempt.
“It looks clearly like somebody placed it there, camouflaged it for the purpose of doing surveillance on the house that it was pointed at,” Lone Tree Police Chief Kirk Wilson told FOX31 in Denver.
The police chief added that the camouflaged camera is part of an evolving high-tech strategy used by sophisticated burglary rings.
“I’ve never seen this level of surveillance being done on a burglary, but this is kind of a nationwide crime trend if you will, and so this is not the first camera that we know has been used. I think there’s been others recovered,” Wilson explains.
The camera was reportedly directed at the home of a local Asian business owner. Last fall, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office published an alert warning the public about a burglary ring targeting the homes of Asian business owners in the area. At that time, authorities explained that suspected thieves were placing trackers on the target’s vehicles and utilizing hidden cameras.
Authorities added that the burglars may also use Wi-Fi jammers to disable security cameras and alarm systems during hits. Evidence shows that the thieves cut coaxial cables connected to home alarms and surveillance systems.
As of last October, burglary losses from the targeted homes totaled nearly $1 million. Lone Tree police are investigating to confirm if the new camouflaged camera is connected to prior burglary cases.
“It’s pretty concerning. I know if I was that person with a camera pointed at my house I’d be very, very concerned,” Wilson says.
It isn’t just would-be criminals in Colorado who are employing hidden cameras. Last May, a family in California discovered a hidden camera disguised as a rock outside their home, Cameras hidden inside fake rocks have been used for other nefarious reasons, too, including a Japanese man using one to spy on women bathing in hot springs last year.
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