Valley Woman Hides From Home-Invasion Robbers, Calling 911 From Closet

TARZANA, CA — A woman survived a home-invasion robbery in Tarzana by calling 911 while hiding from intruders in a closet overnight, and police searched for the suspects in the area Friday.

The Los Angeles Police Department received the call for a burglary in progress at 11:40 p.m. in the 5700 block of Shirley Avenue, said LAPD Officer Charles Miller.

"It looks like the suspect broke into the residence while the victim was home," Miller told Patch.

The resident reported seeing intruders breaking into her living room, prompting her to hide.

"There were no injuries, and officers arrived to find the suspects gone," Miller said.

Police searched the area, but did not have a suspect description, he added.

There have been several high-profile and violent home invasion robberies in Encino, Tarzana, Sherman Oaks and Northridge areas in recent years.

In August, robbers accosted a nanny and forced her into a bedroom, steeling approximately $200,000 worth of property from a Sherman Oaks home. Also in August, a "hot prowl" burglar was stabbed in a tussle with a father and daughter in Winnekta after breaking into their home.

In 2022, robbers awoke and severely beat a resident in a Tarzana follow-home invasion burglary.

That same year, a sleeping couple in Tarzana was surprised by a pair of burglars breaking into their home overnight, but it was the burglars who ended up fleeing in terror. Armed with a shotgun, the homeowner confronted two would-be burglars in his kitchen.

And in July, one fed-up homeowner in Tarzana took the vigilante route. Amid a rash of burglaries, he set up an elaborate security system of about 40 cameras and scared off would-be burglars at his neighbor's house with flood lights and a paintball gun.