MARION COUNTY, Fla. – A Central Florida cat burglar recently went online to discuss how she broke into “over 200 homes” during her criminal escapades.
Court records show that the former burglar — Jennifer Gomez, now 40 — was arrested in 2011 by Marion County deputies and later found guilty of nine counts of burglary, along with other charges like dealing in stolen property and grand theft.
Investigators said she was responsible for a great number of home burglaries in the area, stealing valuable pieces of jewelry and selling them at a local pawn shop.
Gomez was sentenced to 10 years in prison for her crimes, though she was eventually released in February 2020, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Shortly thereafter, she took to YouTube and TikTok — under the handle “Jen Jen Gomez” — making videos about her experiences in prison.
Earlier this month on the Locked In With Ian Bick podcast, Gomez was brought on to explain some of the tricks she used to carry out these schemes.
The podcast starts with the host, Ian Bick, likening Gomez to a “real-life Catwoman,” and she discusses how she grew up in Jacksonville as a child.
“I had a really good upbringing, actually. Everyone in my family’s very well-to-do, put together, walking the straight-and-narrow,” Gomez said. “My mom’s a neurologist. My dad’s a psychiatrist. I went to private schools. I’ve had a really good, nice life and was afforded a lot of good opportunities. And I kinda just pissed it all away.”
The two then discuss Gomez’s shift toward burglary, which she claimed was fueled by drug addiction and the influence of a Russian man with whom she’d had a relationship.
Below are some of the details she shared during the video:
WHICH HOMES TO TARGET
Gomez said she would target expensive homes to make sure the burglary would be a “lucrative hit.”
However, she said she wouldn’t go after “multi-million” homes due to the risks of extra security on those kinds of properties.
Because of her upbringing, Gomez argues, she knew what her parents and neighbors would do to keep their homes safe, so she was more aware of what to keep an eye out for.
“Rich people always want to advertise their security. This home is under surveillance; ADT alarm system stickers; a picket in the front of the yard. They just want you to know,” she explained. “But for me, that was a good thing because what you’re telling me is you have things to protect, and now I know there’s an alarm system, so I’m gonna work around it.”
AVOIDING TROUBLE
She added that she would look for targets in places that involved less risk.
“I would always try to find a home that was in a cul-de-sac so I wouldn’t get lost in there and/or a home that backed up to a street,” she said. “Not like a main street, but just maybe like a two-way street that was right outside the neighborhood because sometimes, I would have to jump the fence if I had to get out of there quickly.”
@ianbick She really had the perfect system 😳 #ianbick ♬ original sound - Ian Bick
Gomez explained that she would also look for trees, shrubbery or privacy fences that could be used as hiding spots.
“When I get in their backyard, I’m completely concealed,” she said.
In addition, Gomez would keep an eye out for whether homeowners had any animals out and about, as it typically meant that there were no motion sensors.
LET IT RAIN
Gomez stated during the interview that she’d “prefer” to perform her burglaries on rainy days, as people aren’t typically outside.
“In Florida, there’s a lot of rain and a lot of humidity, so that’s very common...” she said. “They’re not gardening. They’re not mowing their grass. There’s not landscapers. There’s not anyone jogging in the neighborhood. There’s not a mom pushing her baby.”
And even if there is someone who can see her — such as through a window — the raindrops helped to obscure their view, she added.
THE “RUSE”
Part of Gomez’s “ruse” was that she would act as though she was a “med spa for dogs,” she claimed.
“I always made sure to wear scrubs and pull my hair back, and I didn’t wear any makeup. I’d try to look as young as possible...” she said. “Like, ‘I’m here to pick up Rufus and Sammy to go to the med spa or to the pet spa.”
She would also wear shoes that were either one size too big or too small — a trick she pulled from television shows — so that any shoeprints left on the property couldn’t be traced to her. Lastly, she’d take a purse to hold her tools.
Then, she would knock on the home’s door, and if the owner answered, she would act like she was there to pick up a dog, feigning as though she had gotten the wrong home.
If they didn’t answer, she would snoop around and begin knocking on windows, trying to call out names and appear “desperate.” At that point, if someone emerged, she could act as though she were performing a “wellness check” and had gotten the wrong home.
But if no one came out at that point, she would move on to entering the home — preferably through the master bedroom window.
WHICH ROOMS TO TACKLE
Gomez said she would usually target three key rooms: the master bedroom, an office, and “maybe” a guest room.
She could use a special tool to cut through tempered glass, allowing her to enter through any windows to the home, she added.
The first thing she would do upon getting into a home would typically be to lock the garage door. Since most people in her experience leave it unlocked, it would allow her to hear whether anyone was trying to get in the home that way.
Then, she looked for any cash or gold before getting “the hell out of there,” she stated.
DEALING WITH PETS
According to Gomez, she would take food to feed pet dogs so that they didn’t alarm anyone in the household.
“Your dog’s not gonna scare me. If I know there’s a dog, I always brought some kind of food,” she explained. “I would bring steak, I would bring chicken, I’d have a sandwich in the car. If there’s a dog that does look a little scary, I’m giving it food, and I promise he’s fine.”
She would then take the animal to a room, shut the door and go about her business.
Get today’s headlines in minutes with Your Florida Daily: