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Victim Of Serial Burglar Urges Community To Be On Guard

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MIAMI (CBSMiami) -- It's been more than a year since a young South Florida woman says she came face to face with a man both Coral Gables and Miami Police believe is a serial burglar.

His face still haunts her.

"I don't feel safe," said the woman who does not want to be identified. "It was early in the afternoon and I was taking a nap on my couch that's directly in front of my living room window, so I woke up because my dogs were barking and looked out the window and there was a man staring into my window."

She said when the man saw she woke up, he walked away and she quickly called the cops.

"I called police to report it and that's when they told me it was the same person because I recognized him from the sketch," she said.

Click here to watch Oralia Ortega's report. 

The man is described as a Latin male, about 5'4" to 5'8" tall and around 150 pounds.

Between Coral Gables and neighboring Flagami, he is believed to have struck at least 20 times between April of last year and May of this year.

The burglaries have mostly taken place in the early morning hours before sunrise while the victims were asleep in their beds.

Police said in one instance, the victim woke up to find the burglar standing by her bed and another woman was attacked before the man took off.

"I'm scared and the community has a right to know and be on the lookout for him," she said.

Knowing this guy has yet to be caught is what prompted this young South Florida woman to get the word out to the community.

"It's terrifying and it makes me angry. I don't think anybody has the right to be violated like this and I just hope the community and the police do their part to catch him and bring him to justice," she said.

She's urging people in the area to be extra vigilant.

"We need to be aware. That's the biggest thing," she said. "You can also carry mace or a whistle to protect yourself. You shouldn't leave your door unlocked even if you're just walking to your car."

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