Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Tuesday Tip - Residential Burglary Prevention

Residential burglary prevention continues to be a focus of the Arcadia Police Department. Increased patrol presence, Investigators working surveillance, follow-up on leads/tips and recovered stolen property, all are pieces to a much larger puzzle when it comes to preventing residential burglaries and property crime. The most important puzzle piece is the resident. It is very important to discourage the would be thief and make their job as difficult, time consuming and noisy as possible. The Department posted a short article on burglary prevention on the APD website. Take a look HERE.

Here are a few quick tips to help keep your home safe:
  • Close and lock your windows and doors! Thieves look for an easy target.
  • Lock your garage door. Thefts from garages are common and it offers ready access to pry tools.
  • Keep bushes and shrubs trimmed so that windows and doors are visible.
  • Maintain your home and make it looked lived in. Arrange for care if you leave on vacation.
  • Don't leave newspapers, mail and door hanger material in place. Put a stop on mail and paper delivery, even if only gone for a few days.
  • Know your neighbors! Be familiar with cars, faces and who belongs in your neighborhood.
  • Leave different lights on when you leave. Use timers when gone overnight.
  • How about a radio with a talk show station tuned in when you are gone?
  • Use window stops/pins to prevent windows and sliding doors from being opened.
  • Maintain lists of account numbers, valuable item serial numbers and important phone numbers. Duplicate the list and maintain a copy elsewhere. Video or photo your belongings. This aids in property recovery as well as insurance replacement.
  • Get an ALARM. Even simple alarms that are not connected to a central system are a deterrent.
  • Ask and look for helpful tips. Your local police agency will usually offer home inspections and there are plenty of websites that offer prevention tips and ideas.
  • Watch for and REPORT suspicious persons and activity. Most arrests that are made for burglary are not from a report by an alarm company, but rather from a local resident. If you see someone that does not belong in your neighborhood or on a neighbor's property, call the police.

If you return home and believe that your home has been burglarized, do not enter the home. Call the police and wait out front. Tell the Dispatcher of your observations and that you have not searched your home. Chances are that the burglar is gone, but you don't want to confront them if avoidable. Entering the home may also destroy certain types of evidence that Officers will be looking for.

Here are some previous related posts: Tuesday Tips - Burglary Prevention, Auto Burglary Prevention, and Being Safe at Home.

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