Santa Clarita officials are working with the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station officials to promote their new “Lock it or Lose it” campaign, officials said Tuesday.
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Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station officials noted a higher than usual incidence of what they call “crimes of opportunity,” which helped spur the campaign.
“Last year, Santa Clarita had 535 car break-ins, and over 200 of those were unlocked cars,” according to a city of Santa Clarita news release. “Car break-ins happen in shopping centers, office building parking lots and even when cars are parked in front of the home.”
Statistics show it takes about 30 seconds for someone to “break into a car, grab what’s in plain sight, check the usual hiding places for other items and get away” according to city officials, and obviously much less than that if doors are unlocked.
That’s the basic idea behind the campaign to bring “top of mind awareness” to a concern commonly addressed by Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station officials, said Deputy Josh Dubin of the Sheriff’s Station.
“More often than not, car break-ins are preventable by adhering to a few key practices,” said Capt. Roosevelt Johnson of the Santa Clarita Valley Sheriff’s Station. “Locking the car every time and removing valuables will go a long way towards preventing car burglaries and damage to vehicles.”
The education and outreach campaign will include a variety of efforts to remind the community of simple practices to prevent car break-ins.
Day and night time law enforcement operations, including undercover activities, will commence in an effort to reduce car burglaries and thefts in the Santa Clarita Valley.
A website created by city officials offers 10 tips to help in crime prevention:
- Don’t leave valuables in your car in plain sight or slightly hidden; lock them in the trunk.
- Always lock your car when you leave it; even in front of your house.
- Once home, unload your valuables immediately. Do not store valuables in your car any longer than necessary.
- If possible, leave no trace or sign that there might be valuables such as docking stations or connector cables. These can end up costing you hundreds of dollars to replace a broken window because the thief wanted to check your car for “hidden” valuables.
- Try to park in busy, well-traveled areas and well lighted areas; be aware of your surroundings.
- Set your alarm or anti-theft device if you have it, it can be an effective deterrent to an auto burglar who likes to choose easy targets.
- Don’t use hide-a-keys; thieves know the best places to find them.
- Don’t think your dark, tinted windows hide your valuables. Thieves often use flashlights to see through tint.
- Just covering a valuable radio or any valuables in your car with something like a blanket or towel will probably only draw thieves’ attention—remove it when possible.
- Don’t forget about your remote garage door opener in your car. That and the registration in your glove box may turn your car break-in into a home break-in as well.
If you see something, SAY something! Call 9-1-1 immediately if you witness a car burglary or suspect someone is checking out cars for potential theft.
For more information, visit: www.santa-clarita.com/lockitorloseit.
To sign up for a Nixle report, which alerts residents about crime trends, tailored to each of the eight Sheriff’s Station-designated “crime zones” in the Santa Clarita Valley, type “Nixle Santa Clarita” into a search engine.
Do you have a news tip? Call us at (661) 298-1220, or drop us a line at community@hometownstation.com.