Sonoma vacation rental home robbed during wedding

A young couple moves to Sonoma, starts a new business, and decides to get married five years into their relationship. They choose Cornerstone Sonoma for the ceremony, on a perfect Sunday afternoon in September.

Life seems great – until they find that someone has crept into their vacation rental while everyone was at the wedding and made away with laptops, wallets and other valuables.

That's the not-so-blissful part of the day that Breanna Tomasello and her new husband Robert faced on the evening of Sept. 15. According to Breanna Tomasello, the groom and many of his friends and relations had been staying at the house the better part of the week, while others in the family party stayed at the nearby Lodge at Sonoma.

'My fiancé was staying there with the guys, brothers and cousins, and his friends who had come to town,' said Tomasello. 'It was a packed house.'

The vacation rental, on Birch Road off Leveroni, is listed on AirBnB.com as renting for $275 per night, with a maximum occupancy of six. It is a permitted Sonoma County vacation rental, and has been since 2015. The house with its big back yard and pool resides off the narrow bumpy gravel road just outside the city limits.

Midafternoon on that Sunday, Sept. 15, all the guys got dressed up in their wedding best and headed to Cornerstone for the big event, leaving the house empty, Tomasello told the Index-Tribune.

Several hours later, about 9 p.m., one of the first to leave the party showed up at the house to find a woman he had never seen before with a stroller outside. According to Tomasello, the woman asked, 'How was the wedding?'

Tomasello wonders how she knew there had been a wedding, unless she had been watching the house and saw everyone leave.

When the renters went inside, they immediately noticed that three laptop computers, gift money clips and other valuables – including a collection of Air Jordan athletic shoes – was missing. And the woman with the stroller outside had disappeared.

'We don't know who she was – it was very strange,' said Tomasello, still suspicious of the woman with the stroller.

As at least two of the men staying there worked for high-tech companies in Silicon Valley, including Facebook, the value of the laptops was difficult to evaluate. The Sonoma County Sheriff's Office was unable to release information, though they did confirm an investigation was still ongoing.

But other things that seem easily stolen were untouched, like the television, kitchen supplies or the mirrors on the wall.

'It's a good thing a woman wasn't staying there, or more expensive objects would have been stolen,' said Tomasello.

The robbery wasn't reported until the next day, as the people in the house didn't want to dim the glow of the wedding or worry others. But Tomasello said when she called the Sheriff's Office they responded quickly.

Tomasello is convinced somebody in the neighborhood had their eye on the house, and knew when it was empty. 'I'm certain somebody was watching, it's way too ironic that this happened then, when no one was there,' said Tomasello.

But Bob and Bre went forward with their honeymoon plans, traveling along the California coast to places they haven't been before. Previous to moving to Sonoma early in the year they had lived in San Ramon; they just started a home meal delivery service called Love Foods, and count among their clients Sonoma Fit and several places in Napa.

'We still love it here in Sonoma,' she said. 'Taking a step back, I mean, all towns have their issues, there's always going to be something. Hopefully other people who rent the home should know, it's not the safest street.'

There are three permitted vacation rentals on this single block Birch, an unobtrusive street that isn't even marked with a street sign. There have been no other reports of police incidents at the properties.

Tomasello said she contacted the owner of the house, but when a call was made to the owner listed by Permit Sonoma of the Birch Road home that was burglarized, Ganapathi Kumaran of San Francisco, he expressed surprise. 'Thank you for letting me know,' he said. He suggested calling the manager of the property, Turnkey Vacation Rentals.

According to their website, Turnkey manages 4,600 homes in 80 U.S. destinations. 'We are aware of this incident and have been in contact with the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office to offer any assistance they require,' said Adam Pedowitz of Turnkey. 'We're grateful for our local authorities who take action to keep our communities safe, and always seek to work closely with them when they need our assistance.'

Still on her honeymoon in Santa Barbara, Tomasello said her brother and others who had stayed in the house were handling discussions with the Sheriff's Office – and the insurance company, which requires a complete police report before they can make a claim.

'I feel like Sonoma is such a small town, whoever did it will do it again,' said the bride. 'It's the kind of things that will show up later.'

Contact Christian at christian.kallen@sonomanews.com.