We’re starting to wonder when folks will get the message.
Two people were taken in custody recently after a rash of vehicle thefts. The suspects allegedly stole vehicles that were left unlocked with the keys inside.
Their prime target? Farmers. Why? Because, as suspects told police, stealing from farmers was “easy.” Many tend to leave their vehicles unlocked and up for grabs.
But it wasn’t just farmers, and the thieves didn’t discriminate geographically, either. These thefts have occurred in this area and in a number of surrounding counties. Vehicle thefts take place right here in Perth County and all of Ontario, said local OPP Sgt. Bernie Miedema.
“People break into vehicles to steal items, such as wallets or a cell phone, that are laying on the seat . . . or stealing the entire vehicle,” he said.
Police have reminded us a thousand times — don’t leave your keys in your vehicle. Lock the doors. Don’t leave valuables unattended.
It takes two seconds of your life to click the locks in place and shove your car keys in your pocket or purse. That’s opposed to the days it could take to make a police report, replace your valuables, fix your car if it was damaged during the incident, call the credit card companies and fill out the paperwork to get your driver’s licence and other important documents back. As Miedema pointed out, sometimes the cost of the damage exceeds the value of the item(s) stolen.
Even if it’s only a few dollars inside . . . “people are that desperate, they will break a window to get at it,” said Miedema.
Some interesting facts on car thefts:
• 52,000 cars are stolen in Canada a year.
• Only 60 per cent are recovered.
• The cost of auto theft to the public is $1.2 billion a year.
• In Canada, 40 to 65 deaths or injuries a year are related to auto theft.
Your stolen vehicle can be used as a quick getaway for thieves, chopped up and used for parts, or set on fire and left to burn for someone else’s amusement.
“All it takes (for a thief) is a quick check (of the door handle) or a quick glance inside to see if the keys are there,” said Miedema. “Lock the doors. Remove the keys. Store valuables in the trunk or out of sight. It reduces the chances of being victimized.”
This is the ideal time of year for vehicle break-ins. People are out everywhere, shopping, traveling, going to events – often with valuable items inside the car. The evenings are warm. Potential thieves can comfortably make their way from car to car overnight looking for change, wallets, electronics – all the things that are routinely stolen from vehicles because some trusting soul didn’t lock their door or carry their valuables inside.
Yet, we tempt fate. Then we cry bloody murder when it happens to us.
Not that it should. No one should ever be the victim of theft. But folks are, all the time and we refuse to learn from others’ mistakes. This could be attributed to several reasons:
There’s the whole small-town immunity train of thought – I’m far less likely to be robbed in a community like this. Or, there’s the I-know-everyone-and-everyone-knows-me ideal. That is, thinking no one you know would ever steal from you. And finally, some still subscribe to the personal invincibility theory – it will never happen to me.
It would be nice if everyone was honest, trustworthy and came with a built-in defence mechanism against temptation.
That is not the case, no matter who you are, or where you live.
People steal. This is not news to anyone.
“People have to take reasonable precautions,” said Miedema. “It’s a very simple, cost-effective way of protecting yourself.”
So invest that two seconds of your life wisely and lock the car door. At the very least, do it for the cops. Give them a break. Lock your vehicle so the officers can be out chasing bad guys instead of looking for your iPhone and $7.32 in change. Which, we might add, could still be yours if you’d taken precautions in the first place.