BRIEF: Fresno’s burglary bug bites Council Member Lee Brand [The Fresno Bee, Calif.]

Dec. 28--Being an elected city official is no insurance against Fresno's rising burglary rate, as City Council Member Lee Brand found out Tuesday.

Brand returned to his northeast Fresno home to find his back door open. Gone were a new Glock pistol, an iPad, a laptop computer, jewelry and other items. Brand said today that the pistol was stored in a locked gun box, but that the box was left out.

Brand said the family had rented some furniture from a party-rental business and had left a back gate open, as well as inadvertently leaving a back door open. The crooks were in and out of the home quickly.

The number of burglaries are up about 9% in Fresno compared to last year. Brand said he will set his home alarm every time he goes out -- something he had not been doing before this week.

The reporter can be reached at [email protected] or (559) 441-6339.

___

(c)2011 The Fresno Bee (Fresno, Calif.)

Visit The Fresno Bee (Fresno, Calif.) at www.fresnobee.com

Distributed by MCT Information Services