Sometime between the evening of Aug. 19 and early morning of Aug. 20, burglars broke into a string of six outbuildings in the Bartholomew/Thorpe neighborhood in Auburn Township, according to the Geauga County Sheriff’s Office reports.
Someone cut the lock on a barn at 10749 Bartholomew Road and allegedly stole miscellaneous tools, according to the report. The homeowner told deputies a generator from the barn was found sitting near the road. That report came in at 7:19 a.m. on Monday.
Minutes later, deputies received another report of a burglary at 10719 Bartholomew Road. The homeowner reported a barn was broken into and hunting equipment stolen.
At 11:02 a.m., a homeowner at 18633 Thorpe Road reported his shed had been broken into on Sunday night. Less than an hour later, another burglary report was received for 18653 Thorpe Road. Ten minutes later, a homeowner at 10675 Bartholomew Road reported a burglary.
Geauga County Sheriff Scott Hildenbrand said Tuesday six properties were targeted, all near the intersection of Thorpe and Bartholomew roads.
“Someone went into garages, barns, sheds and a locked trailer between 2 and 4 a.m. Monday,” Hildenbrand said. “They stole mostly hand tools, chain saws, blowers, power tools and hunting equipment.”
The sheriff estimated the combined value in the thousands of dollars.
“We are following up on leads,” he said. “One house had a security camera and someone saw a suspicious vehicle.”
Hildenbrand said most of the outbuildings had been locked.
He urged residents to call his office if they saw or heard anything suspicious in that area during that time period.
“Anybody out and about from 2 to 4 a.m. is probably up to no good,” Hildenbrand said. “If you see or hear something, don’t be afraid to give us a call.”
