The Sugar Land Police Department has created a task force to address the 34% increase in vehicle burglaries so far this year. During the first seven months of 2008, there were 371 burglaries of motor vehicles, with the majority occurring in retail areas, fitness centers, restaurants and parks.
While most of these crimes occur in high-volume parking lots, there has also been an increasing amount of vehicle burglaries reported in residential areas, mostly during the early morning hours according to Police Chief Steve Griffith. Drivers are leaving property in their vehicles, which creates an easy target for thieves.
Items typically targeted include purses, wallets, computer equipment and electronics such as I-pods, GPS devices, cellular phones and radar detectors.
The following tips can help prevent vehicle burglaries:
• Keep vehicles locked at all times.
• When parked overnight, remove all valuables from vehicles.
• When shopping, make one trip to the car with purchased merchandise, and then leave the lot. Thieves have been known to watch shoppers as they place merchandise in their cars before returning to a store.
• Never leave identification, wallets, credit cards or jewelry in vehicles while visiting fitness centers. Doing so is much riskier than using a locker inside the gym or leaving the items at home.
• If personal property must be left in a car, lock it in the trunk. Unfortunately, this option does not exist for pick-up trucks or SUVs. Thieves are aware that there is no secure place to store items in these types of vehicles.
• Finally, before you leave a vehicle, take a second to look inside and make sure nothing is visible from the outside that could attract a thief.
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