CAT BURGLAR PROWLING IN ENCINO HILLS HOMES.

Byline: Lisa Van Proyen Daily News Staff Writer

A meticulous cat burglar clad in a blue jogging suit has broken into 38 homes in the affluent Encino Hills area, stealing about $500,000 in precious jewelry and cash since September, police said Wednesday.

Police call him the Southside Burglar because he hits homes south of Ventura Boulevard, said Detective Jary Quinones of the Los Angeles Police Department's West Valley Division.

``He's smart,'' Quinones said. ``He's crawling through the windows, bypassing alarms.''

In one case, the burglar picked a lock to break into a house that its owners had left for just 20 minutes.

Always targeting master bedrooms, he heads straight for armoires and jewelry boxes, choosing only the most expensive items, including Rolex watches and gold Cartier necklaces, Quinones said.

He seems to know exactly where to look, rarely ransacks rooms and leaves behind property that other criminals typically would take, Quinones said. With each break-in, he gets away with $30,000, $70,000 or even $100,000 worth of items, the detective said.

Since September, the burglar has worked exclusively in the Encino Hills, once home to Clark Gable and now where Michael Jackson's parents live in a gated estate alongside entertainers, attorneys and doctors. The average house there sells for about $750,000, said a real estate agent for Fred Sands.

Investigators believe the burglar chooses his targets by knocking to see whether anyone is home, usually between 3 and 9 p.m., Quinones said.

On Monday night, police warned about 150 people at a Neighborhood Watch meeting in Encino to store their valuables in safe-deposit boxes at banks, rather than at home.

For career burglars, armoires are like candy stores for children, Quinones said.

``You might as well just put up a neon sign with those,'' he said. ``Most women want their jewelry right there to wear. It's a burden for some people to go to a bank, but you can get ripped off.''

20-minute burglary

Encino Hills resident Les Symons and his wife said they learned Nov. 13 how quickly the burglar can hit.

The intruder is suspected of stealing about $10,000 in jewelry from Symons' home as Symons, his wife and their golden retriever left for only 20 minutes to pick up dinner from Tony Roma's a few miles away.

Symons figured he'd be gone for only a few minutes, so he didn't activate the alarm. And he took his backup alarm - his dog - with him. Besides, he figured his home was safe, hidden behind hills and fences.

``It was so weird,'' Symons said. ``I can't believe it. I was extremely unlucky.''

Just before showering and rushing off to get dinner, Symons' wife had slipped off the $7,500 engagement ring he gave her a decade ago and placed it in plain sight on their dresser, he said.

``Her purse was left on the bed with $60 inside. He didn't even go through it,'' Symons said.

When they returned, the dog immediately picked up the burglar's scent and darted down the hallway to the master bedroom, Symons said.

``I thought someone was still inside,'' he said. ``I could feel it by the way she was sniffing.''

Knows the neighborhood

Investigators said the burglar is so successful because he understands how alarms work and knows how to bypass them. He also dresses in a jogging suit to blend in with residents out for a run.

Quinones urges residents to call police if they see a car or truck they do not recognize or one whose driver is acting suspiciously - even if it turns out to be someone who lives in the area.

``We would be more than willing to apologize to neighbors,'' he said.

One gardener saw the man flee after a burglary and described him as a clean-cut Latino or Asian, 24 to 30 years old and weighing about 180 pounds, Quinones said.

So far, the burglar has hit homes bounded by Ventura Boulevard to the north, the San Diego Freeway to the east, Mulholland Drive to the south and White Oak Avenue to the west.

Kathy Lewis, vice president of the Encino Property Owners Association, figures the burglar knows the neighborhood.

``It's a pattern thing,'' Lewis said. ``He's going into homes with lots of shrubbery around that can't be seen from the street. This burglar knows what he's looking for.''

Richard Kline, who played Larry Davis on the TV series ``Three's Company'' and lives in the area, said Wednesday that the burglaries in his neighborhood do not surprise him.

``You can expect crime anywhere,'' he said. ``The underprivileged get ripped off just as much as the supposed rich people.''

Kline said he tries to reduce the chances of being a target by knowing his neighbors. At least twice a month, the neighborhood meets to discuss issues and socialize.

``It's a good idea as an awareness to find out what's going on on the block,'' he said.

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Map: Thief's territory

A savvy thief has hit 38 homes, stealing $500,000 in jewelry and cash since September.

Gregg Miller/Daily News