Health & Fitness
Police: Keeping your Vehicle Safe from Thieves
No one actually enjoys having their car broken into.
Having your car broken into is no laughing matter. In police jargon, it’s called “entering autos.” No matter what it is called, it stinks.
Entering Autos is an epidemic, not just in Sandy Springs or metro-Atlanta, but in the whole U.S. The reasons why are endless, but several of them are the economy, the ease of the crime, the time it takes to do the crime and the ease of selling the stolen products.
The economy is more of a theory and actual proof is hard to come by.
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When it comes to ease of the crime: It literally takes seconds to break a side window, reach in and steal the stuff out of your car. In many cases, a car alarm does not help because the door is never opened, which needs to happen in order for the alarm to be activated.
Next is the ease of selling the stolen goods. There are many websites out there where you can just about sell anything and sell it quickly. These sites are good if you’re looking to sell legitimate things for legitimate reasons, but not if it’s your stolen stuff being sold for quick cash.
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In a nutshell, to prevent the crime from occurring, REMOVE ALL ITEMS FROM YOUR VEHICLE. These include: cellphones, iPads, iPods, GPS, jump drives and laptops.
Whether you’re at work, home or shopping, you really should take these items out of your car. At the very least, hide them in your trunk, but put them there BEFORE you get to where you are going. There are dozens of signs around public parking areas that the SSPD has put up; Lock your car, Take your keys, Hide your belongings.
Officer Larry Jacobs is the Crime Prevention Officer for the Sandy Springs Police Department. He can be reached directly at ljacobs@sandyspringsga.gov
