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Members of Fairfax County's Indian and Middle Eastern communities have growing concerns about their safety and want police to do something about it.

That was the overriding message Thursday during a town hall meeting in Centreville addressing dozens of daytime burglaries in which thieves have stolen hundreds of thousands of dollars — perhaps even millions — worth of gold jewelry during the last year.

More than 200 residents listened as Fairfax Police Chief David M. Rohrer insisted that the string of burglaries was being taken very seriously. "I understand your anger and angst," Rohrer told the crowd. "I have to disavow the notion that we are taking this any less seriously than any other robberies .... Justice is colorblind in Fairfax County."

The 26 or so burglaries targeting ethnic minorities, however, have not been. Perpetrators have stolen gold, jewelry, family heirlooms, passports and other personal documents, so far exclusively targeting Indian and Middle Eastern homeowners across Northern Virginia.

The burglars, entering through back doors or windows, have typically hit homes during the day when people are not home. The burglaries have taken place since January in the Chantilly, Centreville, Fair Oaks, Reston and West Springfield areas of Fairfax County and in the South Riding area of neighboring Loudoun County.

Break-ins have become more brazen and frequent over the last month.

In early October, six homes in the Fair Oaks area were burglarized over two days: two next-door neighbors on Oct. 6, and two sets of neighbors on Oct. 7.

On Oct. 27, four homes were hit on the same day in Chantilly, Fairfax and Lorton.

On Thursday — the very night of the community meeting that he was planning to attend — Sataya Vallabhaneni of Herndon became the latest victim. "No one is safe," he said.

Police say all the burglaries have occurred during the day and the suspects — who have been described as two Hispanic or Middle Eastern men and one Hispanic woman — are primarily seeking gold jewelry. Other items including electronics and personal documents, such as passports, immigration documents and social security cards, have also been stolen.

Despite potential national security concerns, Rohrer told the meeting attendees that the FBI was "not being brought in" since "burglaries are considered local crimes."

Nonetheless, a U.S. Department of Justice representative — who would not allow himself to be interviewed or photographed — attended Thursday's meeting. Knight Sor, of the Justice Department's Community Relations Service, spoke individually with victims and briefly addressed all the attendees, mentioning that the CRS division deals specifically with "hate crimes."

According to its Web site, CRS is the Justice Department's "peacemaker" for community conflicts and tensions arising from differences of race, color and national origin. Created by the Civil Rights Act of 1964, CRS is a federal agency that assists state and local units of government, private and public organizations, and community groups with preventing and resolving racial and ethnic tensions, incidents, and civil disorders, and in restoring racial stability and harmony.

Sor's presence accented the underlying sentiment of many residents, who feel their ethnicity makes them vulnerable. "I have been a 10-year resident of Fairfax County, which has always been a safe community but now there is doubt," said Ajay Laheri, of the Fair Lakes area, addressing the group. "I feel targeted."

Cindy McAllister, commander of the county's Sully District police station, assured everyone that "we'll throw all the resources we need at this until it is solved," but also said that "we're not dealing with someone just out for a little gold," after being asked by Elanchezhian Sivagan Anam if the culprits were attempting to fund a terrorist organization with all the stolen gold.

Gopal Bajaj, a radiation oncologist and Fairfax resident from northern India who was robbed on Oct. 27, said the perpetrators pored through expensive electronic equipment in his home, only to discard it and steal only high-karat gold jewelry. "We were only gone for about two hours," he said. "I don't think people realize the extent to which this problem is rising to."

"Individuals who commit daytime burglaries are pretty serious characters," echoed Deputy U.S. Commonwealth Attorney Ian Rodway, who then reminded the victims lined up in the front row of the school auditorium that "an arrest is just the beginning...we need your cooperation. The Fairfax police have it now. We will need it down the road."

But for now, some are not certain that an arrest will materialize anytime soon.

"That is the insinuation," said Rohrer. "That we don't care as much because these are crimes against a minority. That is certainly not the case."

"But every day, the potential for violence is increasing," said Ajay Laheri. "Some things are so obvious to me. The burglars are hitting homes in which there are dual-income families. "The burglaries so far have been on weekdays during school hours," he said. "But what happens when they make a mistake and someone is home? We don't need a casualty to raise awareness of this. That is the fear."