Trio points gun at elderly woman's head and ties up family during home robbery in the north of Ribeirão Preto, SP

Three armed criminals invaded a house and held a family captive for about an hour in the early hours of Sunday (8), in the Adelino Simioni neighborhood, in the North Zone of Ribeirão Preto (SP). The men in the family were tied up, and a 67-year-old woman had a gun pointed at her head, according to the police report.

The trio took jewelry, two smart TVs, a perfume, a pair of sneakers and the car of one of the residents, which was found shortly after by the Military Police (PM). Despite the threats, no one was injured, according to the bulletin.

In the same morning, another house on Carolina Tiezi Strambi Street was invaded. The resident couple slept and only found out about the crime in the morning, warned by a neighbor who saw the security camera images.

The family robbery was registered at the Judiciary Police Center (CPJ) as a robbery with the use of a firearm and the participation of two or more people. The bulletin is of unknown authorship, that is, no suspects have been identified. The Civil Police called in forensics to analyze the scene.

Eight people, including two children, were in the two houses on the same land, according to the family, who told EPTV, a TV Globo affiliate. Some of the residents were sleeping, and others were still awake. Out of fear, the family asked not to be identified.

The trio entered through the gate of the land. In the bulletin, one of the residents reported that the padlock was open. On EPTV, the family said he was damaged.

One of the residents told EPTV that he was lying in the living room, looking at his cell phone, when he saw a figure and then the three men at the door. One of them pointed a gun at him, and the resident was captured and tied up.

One of the residents was sleeping in the room with her 5-year-old daughter, when she was surprised by one of the criminals next to the bed, according to her report in the bulletin. The man demanded the ring and other jewelry, and she handed them over.

When the criminal opened the bedroom door, she saw her husband in the living room, with his hands tied with a cell phone charger cord. The other two robbers took turns watching the family.

Her 67-year-old mother-in-law was woken up with a gun pointed to her head and forced to hand over her ring and earrings. The brother-in-law also had his hands tied, and the father-in-law was surrendered. According to the victims, the criminals threatened to shoot if anyone reacted and asked if there was a gun in the house.

After the trio left, the husband said he had been attacked with butts to the head. He had no apparent injuries.

The criminals took the mother-in-law's two TVs, demanded the car key, which was in the garage, and fled with the vehicle. All three wore warm sweaters and hoods. To EPTV, the family said that they also took R$32 from a wallet.

The action began around 4:30 am, according to residents, and lasted about an hour. The family called the police after the robbers left.

At around 6:30 am, military police reported that the car, a Hyundai HB20S, had been found on Rua Paraguaçu, with the doors open, without the key and without apparent damage.

Security cameras recorded the three men walking up the street and trying to open the houses one by one, until they reached the family's property.

In another house, the criminals damaged the gate lock and entered while the resident and her husband were sleeping. They didn't wake up. Through the bedroom window, the robbers took a box with two of the couple's gold rings and jewelry, according to the resident.

“They weren’t able to break down the kitchen door, but they opened my bedroom window, they spent 40 minutes watching us sleeping, we didn’t hear any noise, we didn’t even hear anything,” he told EPTV.

She only found out about the crime in the morning. The neighbor was surprised that the couple, who usually wake up early, hadn't gotten up yet and went to call them after seeing the camera images. It was then that they noticed the broken gates.

Another resident, who did not want to record an interview, told EPTV that she is thinking about moving because she does not feel safe inside her house.

Last week, EPTV showed images from security cameras that recorded criminals acting in a similar way in the Alexandre Balbo neighborhood, also in the North Zone. In the images, the group watched the gates and walked through the streets before entering the houses.