Itinerant burglary crews in Colorado have specifically targeted the homes of Asian business owners and stolen massive amounts of cash, jewelry, high-end watches and purses in what one detective is calling an “epidemic.”

“This is a nationwide trend,” Westminster Police Detective Constable Adam Lanning said. “A lot of criminal entities have realized this and started targeting the Asian population to break into their homes and take money and jewelry out of their homes.”

Colorado is being hit hard by Asian-targeted burglaries with police in Adams County, Arapahoe County, Arvada, Aurora, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas County, Fort Collins, Jefferson County, Lakewood, Longmont, Mesa County, Parker, Thornton, Westminster and Windsor have reported similar burglaries.

Fran Campbell of the Colorado Asian Chamber of Commerce helped spread the word about the targeted burglaries and says there’s a primary reason Asian families and business owners are being targeted.

“They keep a lot of assets at home,” said Campbell, who said new immigrants to the U.S. “don’t trust the banking world.”

Lanning said this, saying many Asian families shy away from banks “So they keep a lot of cash in the house.” And the criminals realized this.

In Thornton, the home of an Asian restaurant owner was targeted this year and the criminals made off with $90,000 in cash, along with six gold bars and a $20,000 diamond ring. In a Windsor home owned by Asian business owners, thieves found and stole $40,000 in cash, along with other jewelry and luxury items. The total value of the shipment was set at $140,000. In another Aurora home owned by an Asian restaurant owner, thieves broke in and made off with $151,000 in luxury items.

In Douglas County, similar burglaries this year resulted in nearly $1 million in losses.

Lanning said the crime crews — believed to be from Colombia and Romania — are cunning and sophisticated, surveilling their victims and homes, putting trackers on victims’ vehicles and even placing hidden cameras in homes.

“Whoever these suspects are, they need a lot of time and energy to cover their tracks and figure out who their target is,” Lanning said.

Crime analysts around Colorado first noticed the pattern in November 2023, initially identifying about 30 burglaries in the Denver metro area. The numbers have grown dramatically since then.

According to a police affidavit obtained by CBS News Colorado, in November 2023, Broomfield police arrested Yury Agudelo-Forrero while she was participating in the burglary of a single-family home belonging to the owner of a Chinese restaurant. The owner told police he frequently stores “significant” amounts of cash from the restaurant in his home. Police believe the woman, who is from Colombia, is connected to several similar burglaries. She was charged with burglary and theft in Weld County, Broomfield County and Arapahoe County.

Police are distributing information in Asian communities advising residents to keep their vehicles locked, check their surroundings, be aware of being followed at home, think about how valuables are secured in their homes and advise residents not to keep large amounts of cash at home.

Campbell — whose family is from the Philippines — said banks need to do more outreach to the Asian community. And she suggested there could be many other break-ins that went unreported.

“There’s that distrust of law enforcement, there’s the fear of retaliation,” Campbell said. “They just don’t trust anyone to do anything about it.”

Lanning said that in some cases, crime crews scout target homes by dressing up as grocery delivery drivers or lawn care workers so as not to arouse suspicion.

“I’m in business just to make money and get more of it,” Lanning said.