A thief broke into a home in the Jaynes Road area and made off with a laptop, purse and iPhone while homeowners slept nearby on Thursday, March 13.
The family of three reported the break-in to North Cowichan/Duncan RCMP.
Just before 3:40 a.m. an intruder entered the family's home by way of a second floor balcony door.
The wife, who was asleep in the master bedroom, awoke when she heard the sound of a door creaking.
She thought it was her husband until she heard someone running down the hallway, said Cpl. Krista Hobday of the North Cowichan/Duncan RCMP.
The wife got up and woke her husband, and they discovered that some of their belongings were missing.
Hobday said if someone suspects there may be an intruder in their home they should "very quietly call 911."
"We don't want to recommend that anybody confront someone because they're an unknown entity. You don't know if they're armed, or if they're high on drugs, or if they are just crazed," she said. "Sometimes just screaming makes them run because they don't want to be detected, they don't want to be apprehended, but you don't want to take that chance.
"If they're too afraid to speak because they think the intruder might hear them, just leave the line open," she advised, explaining that this will trigger a call back to their number.
If that call rings busy, police will be sent to investigate - "It kind of heightens our Spidey senses," said Hobday - as they are required to investigate all 911 calls.
In this case, the Police Service Dog unit was dispatched and found a purse on a local trail, but it turned out not to be the one stolen from the home. They could not locate a suspect.
The homeowner described the suspect as having a slender build and standing about 5 foot 9 inches tall.
"With warmer weather soon arriving the RCMP are reminding citizens to keep their doors locked at all times, even when they are in their homes," said Hobday.
If you have information about this or any other crime, call North Cowichan/Duncan RCMP at 250-748-5522 or call Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).