Shorewood Police are warning homeowners to be alert.
Thieves are targeting houses and sneaking inside while people are sleeping. But police say the targeted homes all have one thing in common -- an open window.
Steve McCurtry lives off of Downer Avenue. He had fallen asleep on his couch watching TV when he was suddenly woken up.
"About 1 in the morning, it's dark, but I hear a noise in the laundry room," says McMurtry.
He wondered if it was his wife who had come downstairs to look for him.
"I kinda walked in that direction and kinda called out her name," McMurtry says.
As he got closer, he realized someone was shining a flashlight in the dark. It was a burglar. He says the guy knocked out the dryer vent and pushed in the storm window.
On Monday morning, Shorewood Police say it happened again. An intruder was scared away by a family living in the Menlo Boulevard, Oakland Avenue area. Police say he also got in through an open window.
McMurtry says he it doesn't matter how small the window is, he is making sure it's secure.
"I'm going to make sure storm windows are tight, that windows are locked," McMurtry said. "I'm not going to make that mistake again."
Police do not have a good description of the burglar(s), but a homeowner described one as a male between the ages of 15 to 20.
