Watchful neighbors and community involvement have yet again helped the Antioch Police Department apprehend criminals who were involved in committing residential burglaries.

In recent days there have several burglaries in which caring and watchful neighbors have reported suspicious activity prior to the actual crime being committed. In other cases, neighbors have provided timely and relevant descriptive information just after a burglary was committed and their diligent reporting was instrumental in the suspect’s apprehension.

Protecting the innocent from crime and apprehending those who are responsible for it instills pride in the men and women of the Antioch Police Department. The residents of this community who have been actively assisting in this endeavor are deserving of praise and should be proud that they too are making a difference.

‘Tis the season to be jolly, but it is also the season to be wary of burglars, thieves, pickpockets and other holiday Grinch’s. Nothing can ruin the holiday spirit faster than becoming the victim of a crime. This is the time of year during which we have experience a rise in burglaries.

Unfortunately, burglars view the holiday season a little differently. For them, it is a time of opportunity to burglarize your home and to steal your property, which in many cases includes gifts. Homes with openly displayed Christmas trees that are easily visible from the street are very tempting targets; as are homes where the discarded gift boxes are piled up after the holiday.

The burglars appreciate knowing which homes have expensive gifts inside to steal. Breaking the boxes down or cutting them up prior to disposal will help.

The holiday season is a very busy time and many of us have thousands of things on our minds. Remember to stay alert to your surroundings especially when shopping. Park in areas that have adequate lighting, plan group shopping trips; don’t put purchases inside the passenger compartment of your vehicle; place them in the trunk.

Don’t over burden yourself with carrying too much, don’t carry large amounts of cash and be on the look-out for strangers approaching you for any reason. Con-artists try various methods to distract you with the intention of taking your money or belongings.

Additional crime prevention information on burglaries and personal security can be found in the associated PowerPoint presentations:

http://www.ci.antioch.ca.us/CityGov/Police/beatalert/12081102.pdf

http://www.ci.antioch.ca.us/CityGov/Police/beatalert/12081103.pdf

 

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 8th, 2011 at 2:14 pm and is filed under Police & Crime. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.