Last week, Savannah-Chatham Metro Police experienced a large number of burglaries to residences, yards and cars ... it appears to us, that thieves are starting their Christmas shopping early ...
The biggest frustration we have is that so many of these thefts could be avoided by simply making your home or vehicle less of a target to thieves - who in general - are pretty lazy. If they see a car with an IPOD on the front seat and an open door - that's just an invitation. If they see a car with nothing of value noticeable, they will go to the next one. Incredibly, a number of thefts from vehicles are simply criminals who see money on the console - open the unlocked door - take the money ... and run.
We don't want to blame victims. We all wish we lived in a world where people could leave their car doors open, sliding patio doors unlocked, and bikes and power tools in open garages and backyards. Unfortunately, that is not the world we live in today.
It appears to us that flat screen TVs, IPODs, play stations, electronics and money are the items of choice for our criminals. If you just bought a flat screen TV, store the box - leaving it out for the trash collector, is equal to yelling down the street, "come to my house and steal my new TV".
We continue to push the idea to "CLEAR" your car every single time you leave it ... and that means Close your windows ... Lock your doors ... Engage any safety device ... And ... Remove all valuables from sight. A simple thing to do.
With the holiday shopping season upon, don't make it easy for criminals to ruin your holidays. "Harden your target" by taking simple but effective steps to cut down on residential burglaries and thefts from vehicles.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
4 comments:
My home was robbed at 11 pm with lights on in the house, dogs at home, doors locked etc. 2 associates at work had their homes robbed in broad afternoon daylight with the same situation. Doors locked, nothing attracting criminals, etc. I am hearing more and more about this type of crime than the crime mentioned in this article (Ipod left out, door unlocked, etc.) What is being done about that? Another frustrating fact is that after the initial investigation I have not received ONE follow up call from the police regarding the investigation.
Police have upped visual patrols in many areas - such as using our Mounted Units. Crime Suppression Units (CSUs), which do a lot of undercover work, are also out there trying to track down these criminals. With the limited resources the department has, we are doing the best we can. We do depend on the partnership of our community to help out - and call when people see suspicious activity - and watch out for each other.
Police are also trying to come up with options for recidivists and juveniles - who commit a great number of these crimes - and how to keep them off the streets.
As for follow-up, if you have the CRN (report number), please contact us at your convenience. Officers often have problems tracking people down during the day (contact numbers are usually home numbers) and ask to speak with the officer in charge of your case. In many instances, it will be difficult to solve the case. However, if you marked your property, you can check back to this website, or call our property room to see if it has been turned in.
Thanks for your response. I will reach out to the detective that was on my case. I think I got my hopes up because the burglar had used a credit card that they found at a local BP gas station and I thought with all the camera technology today that might be a big lead.
I also know that I definitely need to engage my community to be more aware and vigilant when we spot suspicious activity. It is difficult it seems since many don't seem to care. I live in the South Gardens area and even minor things like littering and loitering are accepted by many there...
It's a sad fact that many gas stations and stores have malfunctioning or non-functioning video ... or some, none at all. Thank you for being part of the solution!
Post a Comment