Renton Police urge residents to keep their doors and windows locked, especially at night, because of a rash of residential burglaries – many when the residents are at home.

More than a dozen such burglaries have been reported in recent weeks in north Renton and in south Newcastle.

The suspects simply enter through an unlocked door or open window and grab easily located items, such as cash or car keys, before leaving, according to police.

The idea is to turn the stolen items into something valuable quickly. In some cases the burglars have left behind tools and other bigger items that are harder to pawn, according to police.

Guns were left behind but a five-year-old laptop was stolen, as were tools, in a Highlands burglary March 15.

“With the increase in temperatures and summer months ahead, it’s easy to let down your guard to enjoy the weather,” said Renton Police spokesperson Terri Vickers. “Don’t give criminals an easy opportunity to steal your property – keep your doors and windows locked.”

Perhaps 30 years ago, Renton experienced a similar string of burglaries committed at night, which, like now, was unusual, according to Vickers.

“They don’t want to interact with people,” Vickers said of the burglars.

Several years ago there was a rash of burglaries in Renton committed during the day, when people typically aren’t at home.

No arrests have been made, although in a Feb. 13 burglary, a Tukwila K9 track led to a nearby residence. The soles on a teen’s tennis shoes possibly matched imprints found at crime scene and were wet. But the victim, who had confronted the burglar inside his home, did not recognize the teen as the person in his home.

In one case the burglars came through an unlocked sliding-glass door and stole car keys, a purse and a computer owned by Boeing, all without waking the residents or the dogs sleeping upstairs.

In just seconds a burglar removed a window screen and entered the home through an open window into a room where three children were sleeping – then stole items from the victim’s purse and left through the front door.

In another case, a woman’s wallet stolen the night before in Newcastle was found March 19, with credit and debit cards still inside, by a Renton woman walking her child to school in the Renton Highlands.

Vickers said it’s possible other incidents have gone unreported because residents think they’ve simply misplaced their belongings, not guessing a burglar entered their home and stole them while they slept.

Renton Police offered some ideas to help secure a home:

• A secondary lock on sliding-glass doors or a sturdy dowel in the door track or a window track, will decrease the chance a burglar will pry open a door or window.

• All exterior doors should be solid wood or metal, and fitted with deadbolt locks installed with 3-inch screws, to reduce the risk of prying.

• Window screens do not provide security, as they can easily be removed or cut.

A security video showed three young men outside a Renton house at about 3 a.m. March 21. One of them found an unlocked door, entered the house, picked up an iPad in the living room and set it down in the kitchen, all caught on security video.

But one of the males outside alerted the one inside that there were cameras and they all fled without taking anything.