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HYRUM, Cache County — On most days, the Hyrum City Senior Citizens Center is seen as a safe, quiet place. However, that's not how Director Vicky McCoombs felt one morning about a week ago.
"(I) opened my office and it was trashed," McCoombs said. "There was like the desk, the drawers, the closets, everything had been pulled out."
Afraid that an intruder might still be inside, she went outside to her car before calling police.
"When they came, we discovered the back door had been kicked in and broken out," McCoombs said.
Cache County deputies believe that night, the same intruders broke into the Sinclair gas station at 325 W. Main St. Surveillance video briefly shows two men wearing hats and masks. They quickly ran back outside moments later when an alarm sounded, detectives said. According to deputies, the men then attempted to break into a nearby auto shop before calling it a night.
"The way that they're breaking into the buildings, the things that they're taking, all of that seems to be similar," Cache County sheriff's Lt. Mike Peterson explained. "We've been able to link eight cases together that we believe have the same suspects; very similar circumstances and similar evidence we're gathering at the scenes."
Peterson said the men take mostly cash and gift cards, leaving behind electronics and other items that could be traced.
"Most of (the burglaries) (are) centered around the south end of our valley, mostly the towns of Hyrum and Wellsville," Peterson added.
Detectives are hoping someone might recognize something from the surveillance video. They'd also like to talk with the driver of a late model Mazda 3 with black rims that was seen leaving the Sinclair gas station.
McCoombs said she's just grateful the men didn't take any of the handmade quilts from the senior center because sales from them help support the facility. However, the burglars did take cash from the office and gift cards that were supposed to be given out to the seniors.
"I hope people understand that, you know, don't make targets of older people," McCoombs said. "They're good people. They're living on small incomes, a lot of them, you know? Don't mess up their playground."