A chemical process allows burglars to force the doors of apartments in Ile-de-France quietly, reports Le Parisien. At least fifty homes have already been affected….
Fifty apartments already targeted in Ile-de-France, doors that open without resistance and without noise, no trace left on the lock or almost and almost no leads for the investigators…e Parisian reports since the start of the school year that the police are looking for burglars who use a chemical process to break into homes. A new mode of intrusion which involves the use of a “strange corrosive liquid” that the police have not yet clearly identified. The newspaper, which interviewed several victims, mentions “acid or liquid nitrogen” which, introduced into the lock cylinder, will damage the locking system. All that remains is for the criminals to slip a tool inside it to enter the dwellings without obvious break-in.
This new modus operandi for burglars has been observed dozens of times in western Paris, particularly in Hauts-de-Seine and Yvelines. The municipalities of Boulogne-Billancourt, Issy-les-Moulineaux, Chaville and Levallois-Perret have been particularly targeted since mid-July. In the 78, Versailles, Le Pecq and Saint-Germain-en-Laye were also targeted. Each time, the traces left by the professionals are so tiny (“yellow or orange traces”) that no serious leads have yet been found. The police are hesitating between “old hands” in burglary, delinquents from the Paris region or “a gang from Eastern Europe”. At this stage, searches for fingerprints are systematically carried out and these analyzed in the existing databases.
According to a police officer interviewed by Le Parisien, the sums stolen reach several thousand euros for each burglary, up to 10,000 or 30,000 euros for the largest. Burglars focus on cash and jewelry, leaving out electronics and computer equipment. No vandalism or “unnecessary” damage is found. Only adult bedrooms, dressing rooms or furniture that may contain liquids or valuables are visited and sometimes returned. Another sign of a delinquency visibly very well organized.