CALIFORNIA — In early August, 35-year-old David Lefevre rented out a home on Calderon Avenue using AirBnB. But, just before he was supposed to stay at the home, he abruptly cancelled his reservation. The apartment was subsequently burglarized, and several items were taken.
On Aug. 11, the victim who lived in the Calderon home called MVPD to tell us that he had gotten a call that someone had opened a credit account and would be picking up a new iPhone at a local AT&T store. Our detectives met Lefevre at the store and he was subsequently arrested on charges of residential burglary, possession of stolen property, identity theft, fraudulent use of a credit card and possession of another’s identity to commit identity theft. A majority of the items taken from the Calderon home were found in his car.
It appears this is a new crime trend occurring in the Bay Area involving people renting out their homes via services such as AirBnb. Criminals are using these short-term rentals to steal valuables from the homeowners, cause damage to the residence, and obtain personal identifying information about the homeowners.
Mountain View Police
