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Crime & Safety

Police Advise Residents to Lock Car Doors

Reports show many cars stolen from in December.

In the past ten days, at least ten cars have been reportedly stolen from. This includes GPS systems, electronic devices, phone chargers and purses.

Most thefts occurred right out front of a house or in the driveway.

“It’s the simplest thing,” said Detective Chad Lengel of , “Make sure your car doors are locked.”

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By remembering to lock your car door, the thefts could be reduced by about 75 percent, he said. Typically, a thief will try for unlocked doors and hit up to 20 cars in a night, rather than breaking into a locked vehicle. Broken windows are louder than simply pulling a door handle, he pointed out.

Tips from the detective

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  • Lock car doors and windows
  • Park in a well-lit area or a garage
  • Hide away valuables: phone charger, change, purse, iPod, radio faceplates and GPS devices

It’s like leaving three one hundred dollar bills right on the dashboard,” Lengel said about expensive GPS units.

In case of a break-in

  • Contact Cuyahoga Falls Police Department at 330-928-2181 to file a report.
  • “Don’t get your hopes up that someone will get caught,” Lengel said.

The detective urges people to file a report even for simple break-ins, such as stolen change, because it allows them to track incidents. They can determine where and when to have more patrol cars.

Reports can also help catch a multi-car thief and link the person back to the crimes. Lengel reminds people it is not like CSI—door handles hold too many sets of fingerprints to pinpoint a suspect that way. Finding patterns in reported thefts is the best way to keep residents safe and find the car robber.

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