Unease in Sarnia following another home invasion

A violent attack at a home in Sarnia, the third in four months, has some residents on edge.

The latest happened inside a unit of an apartment building on Afton Drive.

“It’s just not safe anymore,” shared Shirley Kerluke, a resident of 148 Afton Drive.

“I know I don’t go out in the evenings anymore. I don’t even feel safe to go for a walk around here in the daytime. It’s not good.”

Sarnia Police were called to the five-storey apartment building around 4:30 a.m. Sunday.

Police said a suspect broke into one unit demanding cash and valuables.

“The male also had a hammer with him and was wielding it asking for those items”, Sarnia Police Insp. Leo Murphy told CTV London.

After getting what he wanted from the frightened tenants, the man fled.

Officers arrived a short time later but could not locate a suspect.

However, using phone tracking software, they followed a signal of a phone taken in the incident to the area of Queen and Talfourd streets.

There, they recovered the device and quickly arrested a 33-year-old Sarnia man.

He faces 12 counts, including two counts each of robbery with a weapon and assault with a weapon.

Police Insp. Leo Murphy stands in front of an apartment building on Afton Drive in Sarnia. The building was the site of a home invasion on Sunday, Oct 22, 2023. (Sean Irvine/CTV News London)

Alarmingly, during the arrest, police heard what sounded like gunshots coming from a nearby park.

That unrelated investigation is still ongoing, but it is believed no one was hurt.

Back at the scene of Sunday’s home invasion, police acknowledge residents are concerned.

Murphy suggests basic safety measures such as locking doors and securing ground-floor windows are a good idea. Where possible, he also recommends security systems.

But if all devices fail, he concedes, it is best not to resist an invader.

“Putting up a fight and trying to hold onto your valuables is not worth it. Just comply with the suspect and call the police straight away.”

Sunday’s home invasion comes just four months after an 81-year-old senior was attacked inside his home. He received over 100 stitches. One person has been arrested.

A month later, on Aug. 28, a man was shot by a masked man moments after returning to his Napier Street home.

Aware of the previous incidents, Kerluke fears more home invasions will occur in Sarnia.

“Things just aren’t going to get any better. We’re going to see things get a lot worse than they are now,” Kerluke shared.