Nighttime crime spree near Palmer Park, neighbors on high alert and thief on the run

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) – Several residents of a neighborhood near Palmer Park tell KRDO13 they are outraged.

It appears to be a man who was caught on camera breaking into their cars and backyards for more than four hours early Friday morning.

The thief’s youngest victim is only 5 years old. “He took my quad bike. I think we should get it back because I really liked it,” Noah Butterfield said.

Noah says he is heartbroken after seeing a video of a person rummaging around his backyard.

His father told us it wasn’t just the ATV that was stolen: “He took some tools from my garage and the neighbor’s garage, but the ATV was the most expensive thing he stole from us,” Phillip Butterfield said.

Neighbors say it started around 3 a.m. Friday; a man walking up and down the street and into their backyards.

However, to the man’s surprise, someone was awake. “I looked up and there was a guy three feet away from me trying to steal tools,” Robert said.

He said it happened after the thief broke into his wife’s car: “When I opened the door he knew what was going on so he ran. So I chased him three meters behind me.”

Robert says the man got away and called the police right after.

Colorado Springs police told us they are actively investigating. If you know anything about this crime, you are asked to call the non-emergency line at (719) 444-7000.