A West Hollywood home burglary that played out in front of a cat camera has left one resident without the heirloom rings she kept from her late mother.
The West Hollywood home burglary happened on Nov. 29 around 9 p.m., according to a report first aired by KTLA, which obtained video from a pet camera inside the bedroom. You can see KTLA’s coverage here.
Apparently, two guys first tried to smash through a patio door but had no luck. The resident told KTLA the thieves moved to a kitchen window, broke through the glass, and then climbed into the home. Once inside, they headed for the bedroom and began pulling clothes and drawers onto the floor, and ransacking every place that might hold something valuable.
At one point, the burglars took the pillowcase off her pillow and used it as a bag, dumping the contents of her jewelry box into it along with other items. Shoes, handbags, and wrapped holiday gifts were also taken, leaving the room looking like it had been turned upside down in a matter of minutes.
For the homeowner, the biggest loss is not the handbags or gifts but the small box of rings the crooks found. This is where the story reminds you how a crime like this crushes a family beyond the immediate theft. Her mother died last October after a ten year fight with Alzheimer’s disease. To pay for care, the family sold nearly everything she owned. “We sold everything she owned for her care, and I kept only the rings because I knew how much they meant,” she told KTLA.
Those rings carried pieces of her family history. One was her great grandmother’s engagement ring, later passed down to her mother. Another was a ring her grandfather bought while he was stationed in Turkey and gave her mom when she graduated from high school. Her grandmother’s engagement ring was in the box as well, all one of a kind pieces that cannot simply be replaced with an insurance check.
The break in is the latest reminder of how quickly burglars can get in and out of a home when they know the resident is away. It also comes as West Hollywood deputies are tracking a rise in burglaries citywide even while some other categories of crime have eased. In October, the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station reported 36 burglaries and 13 robberies, along with 33 stolen cars, according to the station’s October 2025 crime report.
Deputies briefed the city’s Public Safety Commission on those numbers at its Nov. 10 meeting, describing where burglaries are clustering and how patrols are being adjusted. You can read more about that October crime discussion here.
The City of West Hollywood and the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station regularly remind residents to report suspicious activity as soon as they see it. If something does not look right on your block, you can call the West Hollywood Sheriff’s Station at 310 855 8850, or dial 911 in an emergency.
If you recognize either of the guys in the video you can always drop an anonymous tip to L.A. Crime Stoppers by calling 800 222 TIPS or visiting lacrimestoppers.org.
The resident told KTLA she hopes someone will recognize the stolen rings if they show up in a pawn case, on a resale site, or in a stranger’s social media feed. For her, getting those pieces back would mean recovering the last physical link to her mother and to the relatives who wore the rings before her.
