SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - A former Brazilian Jiu Jitsu world champion is appealing for tips after burglars occupied his home for days, before cleaning it out.
Cell phone video shows Josh Hinger's surreal walk-through of his four-bedroom home in City Heights in last week.
“Just like a tornado had hit the house,” said Hinger.
It wasn't a tornado, but intruders who ransacked his place off Fairmont Avenue, while he and his wife were out of town.
“Every nook and cranny of the entire house had been scoured,” said Hinger.
Hinger, a former MMA fighter and three-time Brazilian Jiu Jitsu world champion, had been in Las Vegas for a month helping train a UFC champion for a title fight.
It appears the burglars took a crack at some windows. A screen was found peeled off on the side of the home. The entry point was the front door. A lockbox was cut off a fence. Inside was a key that had been set aside for someone to look after the house.
Missing from inside: almost all their clothes, and electronics, along with a safe and credit cards, and all their jewelry. Suspicious credit card charges had first alerted Hinger to ask a friend to check on his home, leading to the discovery of the break-in.
In the kitchen, the burglars helped themselves to food and drink.
Hinger says neighbors saw two men in their 20s or 30s going in and out for several days during the last week in July.
Neighbors say they didn’t call police because they thought the men may have been friends of Hinger or an Airbnb guest.
“To know our home got invaded, ransacked, and desecrated… I feel rage, anger and sadness,” said Hinger.
But the loss that inspired the most sadness was the theft of the couple's wedding rings. They got married a year ago.
“Just tears immediately. Took this symbol of our marriage — I was devastated,” said Hinger, choking back tears.
Hinger is now sharing his story in hopes of helping police track down his unwanted guests.
“If we don't catch them, they’re going do it to someone else… Nobody knows who is sitting in their neighborhood watching their house,” said Hinger.
Anyone with information on the case is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 888-580-8477.
Hinger believes the total loss from the break-in is between $50,000 and $75,000, and insurance will only cover a fraction of it.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help the couple recover their losses.
