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Police have noted a rise in the number of compact discs stolen from apartments and houses in recent burglaries. 

In a burglary Saturday in an apartment in the 2900 block of Regent Street, 70 CDs were stolen, along with a 19-inch television and a telephone. The burglar entered the apartment through unlocked French doors. 

In a Sunday burglary in the 2600 block of Parker Street where two residents had separate bedrooms in an apartment, 250 compact discs were taken from one of the bedrooms and 70 from the other one. The burglar entered from an opened window in one of the bedrooms. 

On Monday a burglary was reported at 11:30 p.m. in the 2500 block of Etna Avenue in a rear cottage. Earlier in the day a stack of about 60 compact discs was stolen from the living room of the home. The victim, said Police Capt. Bobby Miller, believes the burglar entered from an unlocked front door. The plastic wrappers still were on some of the discs. 

Miller said thieves frequently try to sell stolen CDs on the street or to music stores that buy used compact discs. He said the police department enlists the cooperation of such stores as Rasputin Music and Amoeba Music, asking them to be aware of people selling large lots of the discs. 

Inspector Arnold Liu noted compact discs are one of the items that are more easily converted to cash and easier to haul away than a 27-inch television. But he said victims of a burglary often have left a door or window unlocked making it even easier for a burglar. 

He said one ruse used by thieves to cash in on CDs is to find some on the street, paying that person to use his or her identification to sell them in a store. 

Liu said his detail speaks to store personnel about “being leery of who they buy from,” and to question the veracity of two sellers when one of them acts like the owner but the other shows the identification. 

Marc Weinstein, owner of Amoeba Music on Telegraph Avenue and in San Francisco, said the store keeps lists of collections that have been stolen by the counter. Hopefully titles are included, he said. 

“A lot of people walk in with 10 or 20 CDs,” Weinstein said. If they match the list of the customer who told Amoeba they were stolen, the store keeps them aside and contacts the police with information about the person who sold them. 

He said they must provide current California identification to sell compact discs to the store. “At least once every few weeks we catch them.” 

People who want to safeguard their CDs can take a few steps that could help, including writing their names on the cover of the CD jacket and investing in renters’ insurance. The names can discourage thieves from either stealing or attempting to resell the discs, and insurance often proves to be a worthwhile investment for renters.