Police advise locals to lock their doors
Published on February 21st, 2007
STONEHAM, MA - The town of Stoneham has experienced a rash of break-ins to construction sites, motor vehicles and homes over the last month, and Stoneham Police are asking the townspeople to take extra precautions to avoid being the next victim.
Several motor vehicles were broken into last week, as well a pair of houses under construction and thousands of dollars worth of property were taken from the crime scenes in question.
Thieves have reportedly begun targeting cars with pricey GPS navigational systems as well as cars that have cell phones, laptop computers and other valuables in plain view to people peering in the windows of the cars.
"We just want to remind people to take electronics equipment like laptop computers out of the car, or luck them out up in the truck," said Stoneham Police Lt. Rick McCarthy. "It's too easy for people to break into a car and take off with the merchandise. We recommend bringing it inside or at the very least locking it up in your trunks. Also, some of the larcenies have transpired because the vehicles weren't locked in the first place.
"We strongly advise people to lock their car doors and take the valuables inside," added McCarthy.
A pair of skill saws, with values approaching $2000, were also recently removed from several sites including a Landers Road contracting job, and police believe the cases may be linked a recent arrest made in Danvers. Whether the thieves have or have not been apprehended, however, Stoneham Police think that people taking the extra effort to protect their belongings could go a long way toward curbing the criminal activity.
"There was a case in Reading recently where somebody broke into a house in Reading and stole a bunch of laptop computers, Playstation game consoles, house keys, car keys, everything while the family was sleeping upstairs," said one Stoneham Police Officer. "These people are getting pretty brazen and pretty desperate, so you've got to do everything you can to make sure they don't an easy avenue to steal your things."
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