A woman visiting San Jose on business was in her hotel room when someone started trying to open her door from the outside with a strange device, and she captured the terrifying experience on video.
The suspect used a device similar to a wire hanger used to open a car door or roll up a window.
It happened around 9:30 pm at the Holiday Inn Express & Suites San Jose Airport.
Debra said she was stunned to see it coming from under her door.
“It looks like a coat hanger sticking out from under the door but there are a few pieces attached to it,” he said. “And then I saw that they were actually trying to move it and reach for the door handle. And so I tried to stop it with my hand.”
While doing that, Debra also called the front desk and hotel workers came to help. They faced a man and a woman.
The same man and woman Debra said she saw through her peephole a knock on her door earlier — a knock she ignored.
A strange and brazen robbery attempt was caught on camera. Someone tried to open a South Bay hotel room from the outside while a woman was still inside. Robert Handa has the details.
“The couple said they were looking for a friend and that they knocked on the wrong door,” he said.
Debra told the staff that she had seen the couple before and showed them the video. But the two escaped before the police arrived.
Debra said she thinks they chose her room first because it was at the end of the hall.
“So I think they’re looking for any noise coming from the hotel room. So I’m definitely noisy. I will have my lights on, put the ‘do not disturb’ sign on the doorknob and hopefully those things will help in the future,” she said.
Debra said with a laugh that she might start staying at more Airbnbs from now on, but said if anyone finds themselves in a similar situation, “really, don’t panic … I mean I stopped them from trying in a pair of fingers, right? So don’t panic. Stay calm and get help.”
It is important that the guest calls the police through the hotel because even if no arrests are made, the report alerts other local hotels and other police agencies about the thieves.
San Jose police said officers responded to the hotel Wednesday night for a disturbance call reported by management. The suspects left the area before officers arrived on the scene, police said.
