Police question if pair of South Bay robberies are connected

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KTVU) - Two robberies within two hours of each other happened less than six miles apart in the South Bay.
The suspects in both incidents described as four masked men in dark clothing. 

Coincidence or connection? Investigators don't have an answer but are looking into it. 

“Every time there's a robbery, especially an armed robbery it's concerning,” said Rosemary Baez of San Jose. 

San Jose Police are working the first robbery that happened just after 6 p.m. Tuesday night on the 1800 block of Minuet drive.  

KTVU spoke with the wife of the victim who didn't want to be identified. She said her husband was walking their dog when four masked men held him up at gunpoint. 

“We heard someone screaming. We opened the door and let my husband in. He told us there's four guys and they had guns and they asked me to stop and hands up," she said. 

Then at 8 p.m., four masked men armed with knives and guns reportedly invaded a home in the foothills of East San Jose.

The family was inside, unharmed but shaken up. In both incidents, the suspects got away in a vehicle but police haven't released a description yet.

These latest robberies are adding to the sobering rise in violent crime in 2018 citywide.

According to the Mercury News, San Jose is projected to see a 19 percent increase in robberies which amounts to nearly 1600 incidents. 

“Somebody kicked me and grabbed me. I was in the hospital,” said Emir Djunusaliev of san Jose.

Djunusaliev has only lived in San Jose for two years and says he was robbed. 

“It was at night. Usually during the day it's ok but at night San Jose needs more police,” he said. 

We’re told the San Jose City Council has been working to do just that. 

“What we are doing as a council is trying to throw enough money towards the police department so we can catch these people faster but they always get released very fast with the laws on the books in California,” said Johnny Khamis, Council member District 10.

Prop 57 is one recently passed law Khamis blames for the rise in crime. It aims to reduce the state's crowded prisons by expanding parole eligibility for nonviolent criminals.  Khamis says it's putting people like serial burglars back on the streets a lot faster. 

“In my opinion the pendulum of justice has swung way too hard to the side of the criminal and far away from victims,” said Khamis.

When it comes to addressing the spike in crime we’re learning there's a renewed push to open the South San Jose police substation for an added presence and to increase police response time.

As for the two robberies, they're still under investigation.