Holiday Season “cheers” can quickly turn to “jeers” once one discovers their gifts and/or valuables have been stolen. SGT. Andrew Trilling of the Manitowoc Police Department says that there are several “pro-active” measures you can take to protect yourself.
One is making sure all your gifts are kept out of plain sight. “We do encourage people to always lock their doors whether if it’s at home or they go out someplace in the community. The other thing that we always encourage is to take valuables out of your vehicles, so there’s not that temptation. Especially if there’s something inside of your car, hide it and put it in your trunk or someplace else. Anytime there is that temptation or something is visible, people may go after that opportunity and then break into your car or even open the doors if you don’t keep them locked.”
A second is protecting yourself against so-called “porch pirates”
“If someone’s not going to be home and there is a package that is going to be dropped off, maybe a neighbor could help out. If that’s not possible then we encourage people to maybe have something on their porch like a box of some sort so their packages can be placed inside of it. That way it doesn’t look like their’s packages just sitting there outside of your house, It’s more of a decorative piece on your porch. You can put a little note on top asking that packages are placed inside.”
SGT. Trilling adds that the Manitowoc Police Department deals with many theft calls during the holidays. He says it’s important to get to know your neighborhood and become familiar with your surroundings.
If you notice anything out of the ordinary, call local law enforcement immediately.
