WILTON – Over the course of the past several days, authorities say nearly 20 cars have been broken into in Saratoga County. Before the sun came up on Friday morning, several residents in Wilton witnessed something unusual, which sent their neighborhood into heightened alert.

For the folks who live in the Preserve subdivision, it was a rude awakening.

“Well, we got woken up at about 5:30 with the dog barking,” said Jeffrey Farbaniec. “We came downstairs and my wife saw somebody running away from the driveway and the one car that’s parked in the driveway.”

According to State Police, one of the early risers in the neighborhood came outside to confront three individuals before they fled into the woods.

“We think it’s slightly concerning to me, but we’ve never had a problem before so I’m not very anxious about it right now,” said Duane Wright.

Even if some folks aren’t overly anxious, many are remaining extra vigilant with the knowledge that at least 17 car larcenies have taken place recently in their community. Ring cameras have captured some of the culprits in the act. Wallets and other valuables have been reported missing. Even though Friday morning’s incident resulted in a police response involving K-9s and aviation units, so far the good guys have come up empty.

“People have children. It’s too bad we can’t even let the children out to play any more without worrying about that too,” said Mary Wright.

“We’re more vigilant recently,” admitted Farbaniec, “If it was a month or two ago, maybe the car would be locked, maybe not, but now we’ll really be paying attention.”

“We have a camera and we have neighbors with cameras so we feel pretty safe,” Duane Wright stated.

Authorities say they will continue to work the case over the Labor Day holiday weekend, hoping to make arrests sooner rather than later.