Affluent Bay Area town sees surge in home burglaries; police suspect gangs operating out of LA

ATHERTON, Calif. (KGO) -- The affluent San Mateo County town of Atherton is dealing with a surge of home burglaries involving Chilean gang members.

Police say eight residential burglaries were reported in the city last month.
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Police suspect six of those were committed by organized Chilean gang members operating out of the Los Angeles area.

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The police chief says Chilean gang member burglaries have been a problem throughout the county and nationwide.
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Over the last five years, Atherton averaged about two burglaries per month.