Despite the continuing drop in temperature, auto burglars and
vehicle thieves are just warming up.
GILROY
Despite the continuing drop in temperature, auto burglars and vehicle thieves are just warming up.
In contrast to expectations, police saw a slight rise in the number of auto burglaries last month and made several arrests for auto burglary. In addition, numerous vehicle thefts were reported during the past two months and police expect more thefts as cold weather sets in and people leave their cars running in the driveway to warm up before the morning commute, Gilroy Police Sgt. Jim Gillio said.
This is what happened to the owner of a white 2000 Ford F250 pickup early Oct. 20, police said. While readying to leave, a resident of the 1300 block of Third Street started the truck and left the key in the ignition. However, when the resident came back out into the driveway, the truck was gone, police said.
To counter these thefts, police advise residents to tough out the first few cold minutes while the heating system, and the car, warms up – even if the vehicle is parked in a private driveway.
“Don’t leave your vehicle even for a minute,” Gillio said.
Residents should also take all valuables out of their cars or, if they cannot remove them, hide them, he said.
In addition, residents should mark valuables and record serial numbers so that, if recovered, the items can be returned. These practices could help cut back the sustained rate of auto burglaries that have mounted since summer.
As is typical, auto burglaries peaked in July with 57, according to police. Burglars become more active in summer, as tourists come to town and residents head out on vacation, leaving valuables unprotected, according to regional law enforcement. In addition to auto burglaries – during which a person must break into a vehicle and steal something – petty thefts from unlocked vehicles and truck beds also were rampant, police said. During the past five years, burglary in Gilroy, including home and commercial burglaries, has risen 50 percent from four to six incidents per 1,000 people.
As weather cools, these crimes typically plummet, Gillio said. However, after an initial drop in auto burglaries in August, the rate has hovered around 20 per month, with 24 in October, according to police.
In the first days of November, at least six burglaries were reported, and five more burglaries were reported last week. Additional smaller burglaries might also have occurred but were not reported or were taken by other law enforcement agencies, Gillio said. Common stolen items include wallets and speakers, though burglars also took mp3 players, stereos and tools. In most cases, the burglars broke the passenger-side window to get into the car.
A resident at an apartment complex on the 6700 block of Filbro Drive had a CD player, cell phone, backpack and air freshener stolen out of her sedan in early November.
“It’s kids who are doing it,” said the woman, who would not give her name for fear of retribution.
Teenagers frequently hang around the parking lot smoking pot, she said. The way the stuff was stolen – for instance, taking a CD player, but not the wiring – shows that the perpetrators were not professional, she said. Though the vehicle was unlocked the night of the theft, burglars hit the same apartment complex two weeks later, breaking a passenger-side window to steal a wallet filled with credit and identity cards.
Police made arrests in connection with some of these incidents, nabbing suspected burglars as they cased vehicles using flashlights in north Gilroy, between 1 and 3 a.m. Nov. 6. Nonetheless, burglaries involving suspects of different descriptions have occurred since, according to police.
While the sustained wave of auto burglaries continues, police also warn that shoppers should take extra care as they go to stores and purchase holiday gifts. In particular, residents should be careful to keep their wallet in a safe place and to not to leave valuables in a car or shopping cart.
For some shoppers, this sort of worrying about crime is overkill.
“I never think about it,” said Gilroy resident Steve Hulten as he stopped off for food in Pacheco Pass Shopping Center in southeast Gilroy. “If I was in a different atmosphere – a bad part of town – maybe.”
Yet, other shoppers had already taken to heart advice about guarding valuables.
“My purse is the No. 1 thing,” said Morgan Hill resident Shannon Melody as she waited by her car for a box to be delivered from Best Buy. “I strap it around me. I think a lot of ladies forget and go Christmas-shopping crazy.”
