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Police in West Chester are warning drivers that criminals have been causing plenty of headaches — by quickly breaking into cars and stealing whatever they can get their hands on.

In a video released by the police department, a thief with a window punch smashed his way into a car this weekend, pilfering a woman's purse before taking off.

It's the kind of crime Kurt Kolar can't quite understand.

"It would surprise me because we're from Cleveland, we came down here, and it's a very nice area and all that," Kolar said. "You wouldn't think anything, you know, think, you know – cars would be fine."

WLWT investigator Todd Dykes caught up with Kolar before his teenage son played in a game Thursday at the West Chester Baseball Complex on Union Centre Boulevard.

Dykes let Kolar know police released the video and a still image of the suspect, hoping someone will know who he is.

"Theft from autos is a big problem out here," West Chester police Lt. Matt Beiser said.

It's a big problem that seemed bigger than ever Saturday and Sunday. In that span, drivers filed 11 theft reports - at the baseball complex, near the West Chester Swim Club on Grinn Drive and at Esporta, which was an L.A. Fitness, off Tylersville Road.

"In most of the cases the windows were shattered out with some kind of punch," Beiser said. "Typically, they're looking for credit cards, cash, those kind of things — things that they can easily use, easily use."

Beier shared advice that he hopes will lead to fewer car break-ins in the future.

"(Make sure) that everything's locked in your trunk, not just covered up," he said. "But we want you to lock it in your trunk. If you don't have a trunk, try to put it in the back of your SUV or out of sight. People will shatter these windows."

For Kurt Kolar, this weekend's crimes are making him think twice about the personal belongings his family packed for their day trip to Greater Cincinnati.

"You know, they can look in the windows and see some bags and all that, even though they're tinted a little bit. And next thing you know they're going to break in," Kolar said.

As a result of the theft reports, several drivers have had to spend the last few days getting car windows fixed, replacing credit cards and getting a new driver's license.

Detectives believe the man caught on camera smashing into a car's window, along with at least one other person, drove away in a newer dark gray or silver Ford Explorer with dark tinted windows and two magnets or stickers on the back.

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