Minnetonka residents on edge after overnight thefts Thursday 

In one case, a single mother’s vehicle was ransacked and the windows were smashed.

A single mother had her car windows smashed in one of two thefts Thursday night. (Photos provided to Alpha News)

Minnetonka police told Alpha News they’ve seen several thefts recently in the area bordering Deephaven, including two overnight Thursday.

In one case, a single mother’s vehicle was ransacked and the windows were smashed, leaving her three daughters “afraid to leave the house,” one resident told Alpha News. A second car was broken into a few houses down.

Police said criminals have easy access to these neighborhoods because they’re right off of Minnetonka Boulevard. Orono police recently warned residents that criminals were “targeting” the area.

A Minnetonka police spokesperson said Deephaven officers responded to a group of car prowlers around 5:30 a.m. Monday. They were able to make one arrest.

“We are all sick of this. While you all are spending your time planting oak trees, trying to get us to install solar panels, and dreaming about implementing another mask mandate, we are all installing more video cameras, cleaning up broken glass in our driveways, and praying we are not next up on the hit list,” one resident wrote in a letter to the Minnetonka City Council Friday morning.

Minnetonka Mayor Brad Wiersum called for more prosecutions for property crimes last December, but some residents say “things have not gotten better.”

Police said residents should close their garages at night, turn on outside lights, and remove garage door openers from vehicles parked outside. They also encouraged residents to review their security camera footage for video from Thursday night’s thefts.

 

Alpha News Staff