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An Atherton police car parked near El Camino Real. Embarcadero Media file photo.

Three residential burglaries were reported in Atherton last Thursday, Feb. 29, according to three separate police news bulletins. That’s following a report of two burglaries in town on Wednesday, Feb. 28, according to police.

The Feb. 29 burglaries took place on Adam Way, the 100 block of Tuscaloosa Avenue and the first block of Fairfax Road.

The Feb. 28 break-ins were on the 200 block of Oak Grove Avenue and the 100 block of Encinal Avenue.

The incidents are under investigation.  

If you live near the area where the burglary occurred, police ask you to check your surveillance video, and report any possible leads, to the Atherton police at 650-688-6500.

New bait house program

The Atherton Police Department announced an initiative to deter would-be burglars by deploying decoy devices at “bait houses” at areas in town identified as having higher burglary rates. These decoy devices are equipped with state-of-the-art surveillance technology allowing law enforcement to monitor and respond swiftly to break-ins, according to police.

Those interested in participating in the Burglary Prevention Bait House program, can email Jennifer Frew at jfrew@ci.atherton.ca.us or call 650-752-0503.

Atherton Police Officer Igor Davidovich his partner the K9 Maverick. Courtesy Atherton Police Department.

Atherton police’s Officer Igor Davidovich is also now working with K9 Maverick, according to a news bulletin.

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Angela Swartz was The Almanac's editor from 2023 until 2025. She joined The Almanac as a reporter in 2018. She previously reported on youth and education, and the towns of Atherton, Portola Valley and...

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1 Comment

  1. I guess we can keep saying this is all the fault of homeowners and not turning on their alarms. I doubt this is accurate.

    Is the current police chief Steve McCulley the right person for this job? Does he have the right policing strategy to protect this community? At the Zoom meeting a few years ago, he reluctantly admitted his adherence to “no pursuit” policies. In any event, it’s difficult to say the Atherton police department has done what it’s supposed to do here.

    “Supposed to do” is based on the reason for their existence. I’m not necessarily saying they screwed up (but won’t rule this out). This brings us to item number 2.

    Is the town council taking appropriate action to ensure that Atherton’s dollars for police services are addressing the needs of its community?

    We don’t have a large enough force to properly service this town. If we outsourced to the sheriff, and used the monies saved to do private patrol (no pensions, health care, far lower costs), it probably would actually be a large benefit in terms of lowering crime in Atherton.

    Instead, the council turns a blind eye to this because, historically, the police department has been a sacred cow. They refuse to analyze the situation in terms of what the real cost benefit analysis is.

    Yet, this is unsustainable. It’s appalling.

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