SAN DIEGO (CBS 8) - Three men broke into a Rancho Bernardo-area home early Friday morning while the couple who lives there was inside, authorities said.
Police reported that the men broke into the home, located in the 11000 block of Aliento Court near Cabela Drive, through a garage side door. They wore bandanas and headlamps to confuse the victims.
The three masked men tied up the couple with shoe strings while they slept and then and held them at gunpoint around 3:45 a.m., according to authorities. The suspect got away with cash and jewelry.
"When they came in they had the element of surprise and the victims immediately complied,” said Lt. Kevin Mayer with the San Diego Police Department.
Neighbors say they're stunned. This is a peaceful area with little or no crime. One neighbor said she heard strange noises around 2:30 a.m. in their own backyard, before the home invasion.
"I heard some thumping in my backyard and I woke my husband up to say that was not a raccoon that weighs 15 pounds," said one neighbor who wanted to remain anonymous.
So far, there's no description of the getaway car from police.
Investigators believe the same trio of bandits may be responsible for a similar residential burglary that occurred last weekend in the 10700 block of Passerine Way in Sorrento Valley.
In each case, the perpetrators got into the home through a side door with no signs of forced entry, threatened residents with a gun and bound them, police said.
No detailed descriptions of the robbers were available as of this afternoon.