Thieves break into Visalia couple's storage units using info stolen in car burglary

VISALIA, Calif. (KFSN) -- The car break-in was bad enough.

Jennifer Carrillo takes responsibility for leaving her wallet inside her car for thieves to see.

Inside her wallet were her credit card, driver's license, and even her social security card.

But what may have been most valuable to thieves were cards containing access codes for a mini-storage facility, as well as unit numbers.

"(My husband and I have) been together 12 years so we have a lot of memories in those storage units that we've accumulated over the years together."

Carrillo says she forgot the mini-storage access cards were in her stolen wallet, and it wasn't until employees called, asking if they had vacated their units, that she and her husband realized what had happened.

Thieves had cleared out one unit; the other only had some items they didn't want.

They took furniture, a fridge, washer, dryer, and various kitchen supplies. Carrillo says the items were stored because they're in the process of trying to move.

However, they also stole personal items, some of which only hold value to Carrillo and her husband.

"Family photo albums, collector's items, baseball cards, a signed Nolan Ryan baseball that my father gave my husband," Carrillo said. "I'm a child of the 80's-I had a Rainbow Brite collection. Just all those sentimental things that can never be replaced."

Carrillo has reviewed records from the storage facility that show the thieves visited her two units on four consecutive days earlier this month.

During that time, she believes the thieves cut the original locks, replacing them with their own.

Carrillo says the facility doesn't record surveillance video, and she's still trying to enhance her home's security video from the original car burglary.

She believes the suspects may be the same ones who broke into cars in another Visalia neighborhood earlier this week.

"I'm hoping that by doing this, someone will come forward and say they saw something," Carrillo said. "Possibly at Derrel's, people loading furniture up, in our neighborhood maybe something suspicious, or maybe they know somebody that knows the people that did it."

Carrillo says her security video shows there were two people involved in that break-in: A driver, and the man who actually took her wallet.

She says he's shorter, husky, and used a flashlight to peer into vehicles.