Brookline residents ‘fed up’ with feeling unsafe after increase in break-ins, attempted burglary

PITTSBURGH — Neighbors in Brookline say they’re fed up with not feeling safe in their own homes, especially after a rash of car break-ins and a brazen, attempted burglary.

Pittsburgh Police need your help finding three men caught on camera accused in a string of crimes that happened early in the morning May 27 on Reamer Street and Brookline Boulevard.

Police say at a home on Reamer Street, the suspects cut the screens, pulled them from the windows and broke a window trying to get inside. What the suspects didn’t know was that they were messing with an off-duty police officer’s house.

“It’s just scary,” says Gregory Blashich. “I moved to Brookline in 1993 and it was a very quiet area. Now it just seems to be getting worse.”

Blashich’s home was hit several months ago, and while the burglars were never caught, he wants his neighbors to be aware.

“It scared the daylights out of me,” Blashich tells Channel 11. “Just be careful. For me, I guess I was an easy target. I worked 10-12 hours a day. You would see me coming and going on a regular basis. There was no deterrent - you knew exactly when I was and was not going to be there.”

Blashich said he had an alarm system installed because it’s a small price to pay compared to what he stands to lose. He’ll be moving to a new neighborhood where he can feel at peace in the next couple of months.

“Just to protect me and my house because I’m not even comfortable sleeping anymore,” Blashich added. “It’s scary. Protect yourself, that’s all we can do right now.”

If you recognize the men in the pictures, call Pittsburgh Police.

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