Oakstead Auto Burglary Spree Prompts Call For Information

LAND O’ LAKES, FL — The Pasco County Sheriff’s Office is looking for help identifying suspects in a string of Wednesday auto burglaries in Land O’ Lakes. Thieves are accused of breaking into vehicles parked in the Oakstead subdivision.

As has been the case in several other recent auto burglary sprees in the area, the thieves entered unsecured vehicles, the sheriff’s office said. Vehicles along Ashmonte Drive, Russett Place and Bellhurst Drive were targeted in Wednesday’s spree.

The sheriff’s office said deputies performed a neighborhood check after receiving reports about the burglaries. That check did not turn up useable video or information about the suspects.

Auto burglaries have been an ongoing concern in the Land O’ Lakes area. Earlier this week, deputies charged two people in connection with a string of robberies in the Dupree Lakes subdivision. On Saturday, a person in a dark-colored vehicle is accused of committing several auto burglaries in the Ballantrae subdivision before 5 a.m. Vehicles in the Oak Grove subdivision were also targeted over the weekend.

“Please remember to lock your doors and conceal anything of value,” the sheriff’s office urged in an email to media. “It is an easy way to prevent a crime of opportunity.”

Anyone with information about the Oakstead auto burglaries is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 1-800-706-2488.

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