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Las Vegas valley sees spike in caught on camera crimes involving teens

Posted at 7:22 PM, Jul 28, 2017
and last updated 2017-07-28 22:34:20-04

In the past few weeks, several teens have been caught on camera breaking into cars and trying to break into homes.

Recently, near Sahara Avenue and Hualapai Way, there were two different car break-ins, and the same thing happened in Southern Highlands.

Another video shows a teen trying to break into a home before taking off running once he sees he's caught on camera.

The spike may be due to school being out and kids having nothing to do, but 13 Action News Crime and Safety expert and retired Las Vegas police Lt. Randy Sutton says it's more than that.

"It boils down to 'why not,'" he says.  

Sutton says police are often too swamped to handle every burglary case, and parents often don't supervise their kids.

That's why groups like the YMCA offer summer camps to give teens something to keep themselves occupied.

"It's more valuable for a child to spend time with us than it is home alone," says summer camp organizer Jordan Sommaggio.

In the meantime, Sutton's advice is for kids to think twice before committing crimes because one day they could break in to the wrong home.

"I don't care if you're 11 years old, if someone feels threatened, they can defend themselves."