Burglaries                                                             December 3, 2010

Facts:

Since November 10^th, there has been a pattern of home or garage burglaries occurring in the neighborhoods in Sector 2, which include Bancroft, Bryant, Central, Corcoran, Powderhorn and Standish.  The pattern is the method of entry.   Front or back doors are either forced, kicked in or being pried open.   Many of the items taken have been electronics such as laptops, iPods, GPS’s and televisions.

Neighbors in the areas of the burglaries have also reported seeing suspicious activity on their block.  These neighbors state that someone knocked on their front or back door, then ran off when the door was answered claiming “wrong house”.  One male ran off after a resident answered her door and he appeared to be carrying a pizza box.  This occurred after dark and he left in a vehicle with no lights on.   Neighbors have also seen other suspicious activity like unknown persons loitering in a neighbor’s back yard.  If you see suspicious activity, PLEASE CALL 9-1-1 immediately. 

What you can do:

·        Keep your doors locked at all times—even when you are home.

·        Be extra cautious about your neighborhood. Trust your instincts. Be aware of strangers loitering in your area.

·        If someone comes to your door that you don’t know, let them know someone is home.  If it occurs after dark TURN ALL YOUR LIGHTS ON. You don’t have to open the door if you are not comfortable doing so, but let them know that you are there.

·        Call 911 if you see anything suspicious.

·        Talk to your neighbors about these incidents and ask them to be alert to suspicious activity. We need everyone’s help.   If you don’t have a block club or it has been inactive, now is the time to get active.

·        When electronics or larger items are stolen, providing serial numbers of stolen items to the responding officers is important to help in the recovery of your items and in the prosecution of the suspect(s).

What you can do now:

• Take some time now and document the serial numbers of any valuables that have numbers on it.
• Take pictures of your belongings.  This would not only help in a criminal case but has helped a few residents filing insurance claims when they had a fire in their home.
• Keep this list and photos somewhere safe, like your office or safe deposit box

·        If you are a victim of burglary, report it immediately by calling 911.  Inform the responding officers if you see something that may have been handled or left behind by the suspect (cigarette butt, pop can, etc.).

·        For more information about home security, block clubs and other crime prevention information, contact Crime Prevention Specialist Karen Notsch (612-673-2856 or karen.notsch@ci.minneapolis.mn.us).

Working together, we can make a difference!