Well, it’s been a while. Time to dust off the keyboard.
A couple of weeks ago a resident called me asking for more information about a burglary in his neighborhood after reading it in my news blog, B.G.N.I. Items from police reports are a regular part of the blog.
That week seemed to be particularly difficult for homeowners as there were reports of three residential burglaries.
In weeks since then, there have been several other residential burglaries. Investigators are often at a loss as to what leads to a rash of burglaries, but the crime prevention folks say that homeowners can take some steps in an effort to help decrease the possibility of a home break-in.
The PD has a list of 16 tips to help prevent residential burglaries.
Some are obvious. For example, make sure your doors and windows are locked. While it seems amazingly basic, it’s not unusual to see reports for home burglaries where the homeowner was only gone for a couple of hours. While reports don’t go into intricate detail as burglaries are generally tagged as being under investigation, there’s a good chance a homeowner may have thought that since they were making a “quick trip,” there was no need to lock all of the doors.
It’s also a good idea to keep your garage door closed and locked. And while we’re talking about the garage, make sure, if you have an attached garage, that the door leading into the house from the garage is also locked.
Yes, you want to lock your windows and close the curtain, shades, blinds or whatever you have in your windows. It’s sort of an out-of-sight, out-of-mind approach.
You may also want to take a cue from Genesis: Let there be lights. A lot of them. The installation of lamp timers in various rooms help give your home a “lived-in” look. I have a friend who scoffs at this and never leaves lights on when he and his family travel. Think burglars don’t case out neighborhoods? Think again. Don’t forget to install outside lights that can be activated by timers or motion detectors. It’s a simple step that may help deter a crime.
You may want to consider installing security cameras inside and outside your house. Crime prevention officers say video cameras can play a key role in not only investigating home burglaries, but preventing them.
In addition to offering “at-home” prevention tips, the BGPD also has tips to protect your home while you are traveling.
Some are obvious – for example, stop delivery of your newspapers (if you still get them), stop the mail and make sure the grass is cut while you’re gone, or if you are traveling during the winter, make sure you have a snow removal service.
There are some others that may make you laugh.
For example, don’t (and as columnist Dave Barry would write -- “and I am not making this up”) leave a note that you are out of town and that deliveries can be left with a neighbor. Seriously. Do people really think the only people who will notice the note are wonderful, law-abiding souls?
But the best tip is one that makes a lot of sense, or at least it should. Don’t post photos on social media while you’re on vacation. Nothing screams “hey look, we’re not home” as a photo of you having a great time drinking foo-foo drinks in Fiji.
Breaking news – burglars scour social media.
Not all burglars break in – some are let into a home. In last week’s police reports a home was burgled when a man posing as a ComEd employee convinced the homeowner to check things outside. You know what happened, right? When the resident went outside, at least one other person went in and ransacked the house. Employees for reputable companies like ComEd, NICOR, Comcast, have official and verifiable identification cards. A good rule of thumb may be “When in doubt, keep them out.”
Want more prevention tips? Contact the Crime Prevention Unit at the Police Department by calling (847) 459-2560.
In the meantime, as Sgt. Esterhaus would say, “Let’s be careful out there.”
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