Fake Amazon Delivery Ruse Nets $70,000 in Milpitas

A man posing as an Amazon delivery driver knocked on Donna Kato's door in Milpitas, California, on September 16, 2026, holding an already-open box. No one answered. He texted someone and walked down the street; no delivery vehicle was there. Two masked suspects later arrived by car, entered through an unlocked side gate, shattered a sliding glass door, and pulled the modem, cutting off the alarm and Ring cameras. In under 10 minutes they removed a safe with about $70,000 in jewelry and documents, including her mother's heirloom pieces. Kato said the impostor was banging at her door to determine if anyone was home. "The significant amount of jewelry that I had accumulated over the years as gifts, and in particular, what's hurtful is that I lost all the heirloom jewelry that my mother had given me," she said. KKTV places the gap before the break-in at about 20 minutes; Hoodline and Amed Post put it at about 30. A license plate reader recorded the vehicle entering and leaving Milpitas, per a police report. Private investigator Marc Hinch said organized crews identify homes that do not look occupied and know the windows of time to strike. Kato and Hinch released footage publicly to help identify the suspects.