Authorities believe that the suspect allegedly broke into the Browns' car at the airport, got the address of their home from the registration in the vehicle, and then walked right into their home after pocketing their garage door opener.
Blake and Tina Brown experienced every homeowner's worst nightmare when they returned home from vacation only to discover that there Utah home had been robbed while they were away.
What makes this robbery even more upsetting is how the thief managed to gain access to their home.
Authorities believe that the suspect allegedly broke into the Browns' car at the airport, got the address of their home from the registration in the vehicle, and then walked right into their home after pocketing their garage door opener.
Blake says that the couple first grew concerned that something might be wrong moments before they even arrived home.
"Right down the street from our house, my wife turns to me and says, 'Where's the garage doors opener?'" Blake tells Inside Edition. "And we looked up to see our house with all the lights on and our hearts just sank."
The Browns soon learned that they had been robbed of property and goods totaling approximately $20,000.
"It was the most violating thing, especially having two toddlers with us and it was in the middle of the night," Tina says.
The thief also took the family's second car, but lucky for the Browns he may have made one critical mistake.
In the aftermath of the Brown's home being robbed and ransacked, security footage caught a man now considered a suspect in the case wandering the same airport and wearing a pair of shoes that were stolen from Blake's home.
Salt Lake City Police are now investigating the robbery after Blake managed to track down his car using his phone. A suspect fled the scene in the vehicle but Blake later found it abandoned on the side of the road. Police are now searching for that man, but would not tell Inside Edition Digital if it was the same man seen in the airport security footage.
So this Fourth of July weekend, anyone travelling for a few days might be wise to find a way to lock up any garage door openers.
