Property Crime: the Zeitgeist is Changing

There have been two "home invasion" robberies in Foster City in the past five years. Before 2019 your humble blogger remembers that there was another one, the victims being an Asian family. Asians are reputed to keep above-average amounts of cash, jewelry, gold and other valuables in their homes.

When home invasions were first reported decades ago, both perpetrators and victims were of Asian descent, especially since the youthful criminal gangs knew which houses to hit. The knowledge that Asian homes are ripe targets has spread to crime rings of other ethnicities.

Some of the stash recovered (SJ police/Mercury News)

Headline: San Jose--Police arrest three suspects who allegedly stole $1 million in jewelry, cash from Asian families in South Bay.[bold added]

Authorities on Wednesday announced a joint law-enforcement operation that netted the arrests of three suspects who together allegedly stole about $1 million worth of jewelry, designer purses and cash by targeting Asian families living in the South Bay.

The three men struck homes in San Jose, Cupertino, Saratoga, Campbell and Mountain View starting in June 2024, stealing at least 700 items across nearly 80 separate burglaries, San Jose police Chief Paul Joseph said at a news conference. Officials expect the number of robberies associated with this burglary ring to increase as they connect unsolved cases to the suspects...

The three suspects were identified as 25-year-old Alberto Ibarra Vallejo, 28-year-old Gonzalo Valencia Ramos and 46-year-old Jaime Martinez Arroyo. They were arrested Jan. 16 by SJPD officers with the assistance of the Stockton Police SWAT Team, Joseph said; the suspects are residents of Stockton, Hayward and French Camp, he added.

In the arrest operation, authorities uncovered evidence, including hundreds of jewelry pieces, foreign currency, family heirlooms, luxury watches and purses, Joseph said. They also found five firearms, Joseph said, adding that at least three were confirmed to have been stolen...

Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen said that his office is pursuing the “most serious criminal charges” for the three suspects, adding that they are already facing 72 felony counts of burglary. Rosen dropped the thick complaint packet on the podium with a thud to illustrate “the weight and the seriousness of the crimes that these individuals committed,” he said.

Authorities also said they will seek hate crime enhancements for the suspects’ sentencing because they targeted AAPI communities...

Jail records showed all three suspects in custody Thursday on a no-bail status, with a court date set for Feb. 3.

The suspects are charged with 72 felony counts and have been held without bail. They may also be charged with a hate crime because the victims are Asian while they are not.

Note that there have been no reports of injuries, yet the suspects have had the book (so heavy that it lands with a "thud"!) thrown at them for property crimes. The woke doctrine that property is unimportant appears to be repudiated. I wonder what (or who) has changed the zeitgeist?