Guarding Against Thefts From Vehicles

March 5, 2003

While overall thefts from vehicles have steadily decreased in number, vigilance is required to continue the current trend. The Sheriff's Office has responded to a significant number of cases where wallets and purses have been stolen from parked vehicles. In some incidents, the victim made efforts to conceal their wallet or purse within the vehicle, placing them in the glove box or under the seat. Unfortunately, the criminal located the wallet and purse by gaining entry into the vehicle by breaking a window or entering through an unlocked door. "It's important to be aware of your surroundings," said Sheriff O'Flynn, "When exiting your vehicle, if you notice anyone is paying particular attention to you or your vehicle and you feel uncomfortable, leave the area and call 911."

Other purse and wallet thefts have occurred when these items were left unattended in a shopping cart while the victim was shopping. In such cases, the victim's attention was directed towards other things, the items were stolen and the victim never realized what had occurred. Sometimes criminals act alone. In other cases the criminal will work in concert with other individuals. One may divert the attention of the victim away from their wallet or purse while the other criminal commits the theft. It's not always a matter of being in the wrong place at the wrong time but criminals often look for a specific situation to exist before perpetrating their crime.

In cases involving the theft of wallets and purses from vehicles or shopping carts, the items stolen typically include; credit cards, checkbooks, and other personal identification information. Criminals use these stolen credit cards or checks to make fraudulent transactions at various businesses before the victim is aware or reports the items stolen. In some cases, the crime of Identity Theft occurs when the criminal uses these stolen items to commit crimes of fraud and larceny by representing him or herself using the victim's name. Often these crimes go unnoticed until the victim learns that unauthorized transactions have occurred to their accounts or fictitious accounts were created in their name. The consequences of such a crime may have a devastating effect on the victim. The victim may be in the position of having to defend their name from creditors and financial institutions that assume the transactions are legitimately theirs. Additionally, the victim will have to replace all of their identification, bankcards and any other personal identification items that were stolen.

To help protect you from becoming a victim, the Sheriff's Office suggests the following:

· Whenever possible, do not leave your purse or wallet in a parked vehicle. If you must leave it in the vehicle, secure it in the trunk or a locked storage compartment. Be aware that some vehicles have trunk release buttons that could be used by the criminal to gain access to these areas.

· Lock your unattended vehicle.

· While in a public place keep your purse or wallet in your immediate possession. It only takes a matter of seconds for a criminal to lift these items from a shopping cart or counter.

· Be attentive to your surroundings and be aware that there are criminals looking for the opportunity to steal your wallets, purses, credit cards and even your identity.

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