Medford home ransacked as victims were downstairs watching TV, eating dinner

A Medford house was ransacked while the victims were completely unaware downstairs in just one of a string of break-ins police are investigating.

Paul Ciccolo told Boston 25 News he and his wife were in their home having an ordinary Monday night last week, unaware that someone was upstairs stealing their most precious belongings.

"My wife went upstairs about quarter of 9, and she said, ‘You’ve got to come upstairs,'" Ciccolo said. "And I said, ‘What’s wrong?’ And all her jewelry and all her drawers were open in her bureau."

Ciccolo's wife's wedding rings were stolen, along with his entire watch collection.

"I felt so bad for my wife, because she doesn't feel comfortable now in the house," Ciccolo said.

Without making a sound, the suspects hopped onto the family's roof, popped open an unlocked second-floor window and snuck inside.

"We figured maybe if there were two of them, one got on the bench, they might have hoisted somebody else up," Ciccolo said. "Complete disregard for other people's privacy and rights."

As Medford Police investigate, they're warning residents of a string of break-ins over the past couple weeks, most between 4 p.m. and 11 p.m.

Many of the break-ins were similar to the one at the Ciccolo family's home, with access through a second-floor window over a low roof.

"It's amazing that somebody would have that nerve," Ciccolo said. "There's two cars in the driveway, and this house is lit up like Fenway Park."

Despite the sentimental losses, the Ciccolo's are glad no one was hurt.

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"Thank God I didn't go upstairs or my wife didn't go upstairs and were confronted by this person or persons," Ciccolo said.

The couple is now adding security cameras, something they never thought they'd have to do in 25-plus years of living in Medford.

"It's just a shame," Ciccolo said. "It's really a shame that they do this to people that work hard, and obviously they don't work. All they do is rob."

A number of Middlesex County towns, like Newton, Watertown and Belmont, are also investigating similar break-ins, some through second-floor windows. It's unclear, however, if they're all related.

Cox Media Group