EAST PROVIDENCE — East Providence Police detectives continue to actively investigate a series of house robberies in the Rumford section of the city, which began some two weeks ago.

According to EPPD Lieutenant Raymond Blinn, detectives are "following multiple leads" in the case. The first of seven successful break-ins occurred on December 4. The last took place on December 10. Two other attempts proved unsuccessful, he added.

The house thefts encompassed a large swarth of Rumford, though most have been in the Newport Avenue corridor, Lt. Blinn continued. The perpetrator or perpetrators have absconded with mostly jewelry or smaller, valuable electronic devices such as laptops. As the lieutenant said, "basically things they can easily carry" that are significant value.

To date, police don't know if the burglaries are the act of a lone thief or a team thieves. Lt. Blinn said regardless of the number, the robber or robbers are "getting in and out pretty quick," making matters a bit more difficult for police.

Investigators have received ample cooperation from the community, but have also been given "several different IDs" of potential suspects.

"We have leads we're working on, but nothing concrete at this point," Lt. Blinn said. "I can say we're following up on multiple leads."

The EPPD has increased patrols in the area as a result of the thefts and remains very interested in any assistance Rumford residents can provide.

"We want the people up in Rumford to know that we are taking this matter very seriously," Lt. Blinn added. "We also want them to be very observant and to not hesitate to call us if they see an anomaly taking place. They know the neighborhood better than we do, so we encourage them to contact us with any information they think will be helpful.

"This case will get solved by us working together with the assistance of the Rumford community."