Sheriff’s Office: Vehicle Burglaries Increasing In El Paso County
EL PASO COUNTY, Texas — Vehicle burglaries have been on the rise in El Paso County in the past several weeks, according to the El Paso County Sheriff’s Office.
Sheriff’s officials said five burglaries took place in the last week of August alone.
Aug. 22 – El Paso County Coliseum – Purse from behind the seat was taken Aug. 25 -San Elizario area – in front of a school, a wallet was taken from underneathadriver’s seat Aug. 27 -Westway Bakery – an employee’s purse was stolen Aug. 28 – Malena’s Bar off Doniphan – purse was stolen Aug. 29 – Ascarate Pool – Employee’s wallet was taken from the car
In three of the cases, the item was fully visible in the vehicle.
Officials said vehicle burglaries are also on the rise in the Emerald Park area in Horizon as offenders go car to car during the overnight hours checking to see if vehicles are open and take items from unsecured vehicles.
The Sheriff’s Office offers the following tips to prevent vehicle burglaries:
Alwaysclose your windows and lock your car doors. An open window or unlocked door is an invitation to a criminal. Park in well lit areas close to the building. While parking in an isolated spot may reduce the risk of door dings, a criminal looks for cars parked out of the way in order to help ensure less attention is drawn to them. Remove loose valuables from your vehicle. This includes, purses, wallets, cellular phones, laptop computers, and briefcases. A car burglar loves to see items that can be grabbed easily and carried away without much effort. A brick through the window is all it takes to gain access to those loose items. Report suspicious persons seen wandering around in parking lots or looking into cars as they walk by. Don’t hesitate to call 911 to report suspicious persons, you can even call and remain anonymous.
Keep a list of serial numbers for your commonly used electronic equipment. Even if you plan on never leaving a cellular phone or laptop computer in your car, you should record all of the following information:
Make of Item Model Number Serial Number
Having this information available is necessary in order to enter the items into the computer database. This will aid the police in trying to locate the items if the offender(s) are found with them or if they are pawned. This will also ensure the property is returned to the rightful owner.