On Thursday shortly before noon, officers responded to the 3700 block of East Pioneer for a report of a residential burglary in progress.

Police said 48-year-old Carolyn Snyder was home alone when a man and a woman began knocking on her front door.

“I saw a strange car come down the driveway and I didn’t recognize them,” said Snyder.

UNCUT: 911 Call As Woman Hides From Burglar

Snyder said she knew something was wrong and called her husband to ask if he was expecting anyone. She said when he husband said no, she become even more suspicious.

Investigators said when Snyder did not answer the door, the man went around to the back of the home and used a crowbar to pry open a rear sliding glass door and enter the home while Snyder hid upstairs in the second-floor master bedroom closet.

Andrew Hoffman, puyallup burglary suspect Burglary suspect Andrew Hoffman

“I heard them come in the door downstairs, so I didn’t know what to do so I shut myself in the closet and called 911,” said Snyder. “I was kind of looking to see if I could wedge myself behind some of the clothes and stuff. They sounded like they were coming in.”

PDF: Probable Cause Documents In Puyallup Burglary

Police said the victim called 911 and began speaking to a dispatcher as the man stole items from her home.

911: “Are you in the house?”

Snyder: “They’re coming up the stairs.”

911: “Can you lock yourself in a room?”

Snyder: “No.”

911: “Where are you in the house? (silence) OK if you can’t talk to me that’s fine. Are you in a bedroom?”

Snyder: “Yes.”

911: “OK are you under a bed?”

Snyder: “I’m in the closet.”

Police said at one point, the man entered the master bedroom and began going through drawers from a dresser searching for items of value while Snyder was hiding in the master bedroom closet only five feet away.

Officers said they arrived at the home to find a woman waiting in the driveway in a car. As officers took the woman into custody the man had exited the rear of the house carrying a large flat screen television where he was met by officers. The man dropped the television and fled but was taken into custody a short distance away.

The ordeal lasted less than ten minutes but Snyder said it felt like a lifetime.

“I was terrified, but by the time that I heard the police yelling, that’s when I started to cry because I heard the police yelling and I knew it was going to be OK,” said Snyder.

Detectives said they believe the man and woman, later identified to be mother and son, Mali Hawkins and Andrew Hoffman, may be responsible for about 15 to 20 residential burglaries committed in Puyallup over the last few months.

According to probable cause documents, Hoffman told police he had been breaking into homes for 14 years and he and his mother had been driving around on Thursday looking for places to break in. Hoffman said he always knocks to see if anyone is home, documents said.

Detectives said they will also be investigating if the two may be related to other burglaries in other areas of Pierce County.