Merced sheriffs investigating over 100 break-ins at storage units

MERCED, Calif. (KFSN) -- Not one, not two, but more than 100 of these storage units were broken into recently.

"In the past, Derrel's always had a pretty good security system, including a perimeter alarm and cameras and such," says Ven Warnke, a Merced Co. Sheriff. "Well, apparently, our bad guys know it's not working."

The Sheriff's Office is now investigating numerous break-ins at a Derrel's Mini Storage. The facility is located on Santa Fe, just outside city limits.

"They're doing it with impunity," Warnke said. "They're not being caught and they're far enough away. They're several hundred feet away from the offices where these are broken in."

The thieves are cutting off the locks to units people have rented and stealing the valuables.

According to Merced's Sheriff, the culprits got into 107 units over the New Year holiday and then came back again to ransack more storage units late Monday into Tuesday.

"We don't know what's been stolen yet because the victims haven't all come forward, but we do know that there have been a lot of locks cut there," Warnke said.

Investigators are reviewing security camera footage but say it's the responsibility of the business to keep customers property safe and secure.

"I think if they were to step up and do a better job on their security, we wouldn't have this issue," Warnke said. "We have other places in the county that have storage yards and we're not having this issue."