Two children have been arrested after they were caught on camera pocketing items on a man’s porch and peeking into his back windows, authorities said.
A group of children broke into a preschool and several homes in the Ortega Hills neighborhood on Wednesday night, according to police.
"I have searched my home. There has been no sign of anything stolen in my house, and if there was, I would be the first one to call the cops," Michelle Hemingway said.
After two days of talking to people in the Ortega Hills neighborhood about a rash of recent burglaries, Hemingway said her son is behind one of the break-ins.
"He's not a very smart thief,” she said. “He did it right across the street.”
Joel Underwood, who lives across from Hemingway, said he got an alert on his phone from his security system.
"I captured two juveniles on my back porch looking into my windows and pointing at stuff," Underwood said.
Hemingway said her 12-year-old son is now on house probation along with a neighbor down the road, who was arrested with two magazines in his pockets.
"The whole house is locked down like Fort Knox. There's not a window they can get out of. Once I found out they were sneaking out, this is what I went through," Hemingway said.
Underwood said his home was targeted for the second time in 10 days. The first time, he said, guns were stolen.
"I can understand it being difficult for a working mother or working father, but I had children, and if they were in trouble I found a way to have them supervised," Underwood said.
Hemingway said there’s only a small time slot during which her children are left alone.
"I mean, unless they're going on crime sprees in 30 minutes, I don't know,” she said. “I don't see that happening."
The two children who were arrested are facing burglary charges.
Both will be arraigned Monday in the Duval County Courthouse.
Cox Media Group
