The Auburn Police Department is urging members of the Auburn community to keep their cars locked in order to prevent theft.
The “Lock It or Lose It” awareness campaign encourages residents of Auburn to remove any valuables from their cars, lock their cars and report any suspicious activity in their area to the police.
The Auburn Police Department plans to increase police presence and place signs throughout Auburn reminding citizens of a simple way to reduce the likelihood of having their property stolen.
This awareness campaign comes at a time when thefts from unlocked cars are increasing in Central Alabama.
“Over eighty percent of the thefts we've had from vehicles are from unlocked vehicles,” said Paul Register, chief of the Auburn Police Department. “A lot of the cities in this area are experiencing the same thing. A lot of these people are not from here; they come to Auburn from other places and they walk around and look for cars that are unlocked and take items like electronics and cash and, unfortunately, in some situations even firearms.”
According to Register, most thefts like these occur in areas with a high concentration of parked cars; places like apartment complexes and shopping centers. However, over the past couple of years there's been an increase of thefts from unlocked cars in residential neighborhoods as well.
For example, property from a car parked at the owner's residence on the 100 block of Maple Street was reported stolen in January, including $500 worth of electronics and two credit cards. After an investigation, police arrested 32-year-old David White in connection with the crime on Feb. 20.
“People will just get out and walk through a neighborhood and go from car to car,” Register said. “Decades ago, you left your car unlocked and didn't worry about it. Now we expect that everyone should lock their car and, before that, they just shouldn't leave any valuables in the car whether you can see it or not...Doing that would greatly reduce the likelihood of you being a victim.”
Perhaps the most crucial part of the “Lock It or Lose It” campaign is the public's participation in reporting suspicious activity to the Auburn Police Department. It could be as obvious as seeing someone pulling on multiple car door handles late at night, or, as Register puts it, “if you feel that hair on the back of your neck stand up and something just doesn't seem right, then usually it's not.”
The Auburn Police Department urges members of the community to call 334-501-3100 or 911 in an emergency to report any suspicious person(s) or activity. To report information anonymously, call 334-246-1319.
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