Belmont Police Search For Suspects In String Of Robberies

BELMONT (CBS) -- Belmont residents were under a temporary shelter-in-place advisory Thursday evening as police tried to track down two robbery suspects. Police have not made any arrests yet.

At 5:05 p.m., two people were caught on the surveillance cameras of an Eliot Road backyard. Police said they matched the descriptions of breaking and entering suspects caught on video at a different house in the same neighborhood.

At 5:50 p.m., police sent out an automated phone call advising the neighborhood to shelter in place while officers searched the area. By 8 p.m., the advisory was lifted.

"I see two people show up on my deck," said the homeowner of the Eliot Road backyard. "Once they realize someone was inside, they decided to leave."

Belmont Police Chief James MacIsaac says an officer in the area also spotted the two suspects in a backyard. An automated call went out to people living in the area telling them to shelter in place while cops searched for the suspects.

"We really wanted to catch these guys, so we pulled out all the stops. We called in K9s and mutual aid from surrounding communities, including the Mass. State police," said Police Chief MacIsaac.

The chief says there's been 15 break-ins on the Cambridge side of Belmont this year, with the majority of them happening over the last few months.

"The amount of incidents of people trying to get into houses, people trying to get into cars overnight, is definitely picking up," said resident Ramon Kolb.

Kolb's doorbell camera caught someone suspicious in his yard a few months ago. Police are using home security video from people like Kolb to track the suspects.

"We don't have a description of the individual other than, we can tell from the mannerisms that have been captured on video that it's the same person or the same two people," said Police Chief MacIsaac.

Police are encouraging people to call 911 right away if they notice something out of the ordinary in their neighborhood.