TOLEDO, OH (Toledo News Now) - Neighbors in west Toledo say they believe someone planned a robbery after they found unscrewed motion detector lights and surveillance cameras tampered with around the neighborhood.
Resident Steven Dixon says he chased the thieves to a getaway car a few houses down after they broke into his garage on the 4200 block of Garrison and stole $3,000 worth of electronics Labor Day morning.
Neighbor Bob Norris says the thieves tampered with his surveillance cameras as well. Norris also says it use to be a quaint quiet nicely kept neighborhood. He says now it is being run down by what appears to be one or more drug houses.
Neighbors say two years ago they started a block watch as the older generation moved out and the new neighbors moved in.
Norris took an extra precaution by installing four security cameras around his home. Now the cameras have been tampered with.
"They went up there and played with the cameras at some point or they spray painted the covers or something," said Norris. "The cameras are all blurry so they need to come out and readjust them or fix them or replace them."
Neighbors have taken nuisance neighbors to housing court and reached out to city council last year but they say since then more problems have been popping up. Now neighbors say they need help to turn their neighborhood around before it's too late.
"We want the break ins to stop," said Norris. "We want the drug activity to stop in the neighborhood, increase the police presence."
Council Tom Weinewski oversees the neighborhood, which is a part of his district. He could not be reached for comment.
Neighbors plan to continue to push forward with city council and police to keep make sure that these problems stop in their neighborhood.
