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Police blitz burglary crimewaveHawke's Bay Today 3rd July 2010
Figures released to Hawke's Bay Today show 239 residential burglaries were reported in the twin cities and Central Hawke's Bay in May, an average of more than seven a day. Last month there were just 160, dominated by a near halving of the number in Napier from 114 to 58. In May last year there were 178 burglaries in the area, a figure at that time considered unusually high, but the following month there were just 144, again dominated by cuts in Napier. Police put most of the success down to the arrest of small numbers of offenders believed responsible for significant numbers of burglaries. One man is alleged to have committed at least 24 burglaries, targeting Napier South residents away on holiday. Now police are wary of the school holidays. They are warning people to secure homes while they're away. They're urging those who stay at home to be alert to suspicious activity. And police are warning teenagers they will be challenged if seen acting suspiciously on or around other people's property. In Napier, police highlighted a series of 10 burglaries in Tamatea over the past two months. Police suspect all were committed by the same group and all but one were at the homes of people away on holiday. All but one of the homes had been left in darkness. Law Enforcement Team analyst Sandra McMurray said: ``At this time of year burglars are specifically focused on scoping out homes from twilight onwards. "They are looking for signs that no one is home, that is, lights not turned on, curtains not drawn, junk mail piling up in letter boxes. So, ask your neighbour, a friend or relative to visit your home each morning and evening to open/close curtains, turn on/off lights and clear your mail." Mrs McMurray said people should let neighbours know when they would be away and neighbours should contact police if they witnessed suspicious activity - "like a strange car up a driveway or noises coming from the house, for example". Hastings police Law Enforcement Team leader Detective Sergeant Mark Moorhouse said burglars in his area were knocking on doors or telephoning. "If no one's home, they break in," he said. "But if people are home, they'll say they're looking for water for the car, or they'll ask for fictitious people or find some other reason to explain-away why they're there. These are suspicious types of behaviour, and people should take note of appearances, vehicle registration numbers and that sort of thing, and report them immediately." He said time delays often counted against recovering the stolen property or the apprehension of offenders. "A lot of this gear gets moved-on very, very quickly," he said. "Within a couple of hours, sold. Gone." Interestingly, police a year ago reported laptop computers were popular items for thieves, but this year bigger flat-screen TVs were being targeted, clearly for illegal sale. Potential buyers were also being warned. "You can't get a good flat-screen, 32in and over, for under $1000 new," Mr Moorhouse said. "If you've just bought one for $400, you've bought it recklessly. It's receiving stolen property."
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