CERRITOS SHERIFF’S STATION Weekly Crime Summary March 11-17, 2013

Boris the Burgular Neighborhood Watch Sign (Photo credits: mysafetysign.com)

CERRITOS CRIME REPORT

There were 30 Part I felony crimes reported to the Cerritos Sheriff’s Station last week, up slightly from 28 the previous one. Robberies, residential burglaries, commercial burglaries and vehicle thefts increased. Vehicle burglaries were lower. 277 calls for service were handled by patrol personnel, down from 288 the week before. The 2013 weekly average in calls for service is 271.

After four consecutive weeks without a reported robbery, one was investigated last week. At 7:30 p.m. on Thursday March 14 a male suspect grabbed the purse of a female victim as she was walking on Gridley Road near Bertha Street. The suspect fled on foot.

Residential burglaries rose from two to seven with one additional attempted last week. Four of the locations had open/unlocked doors or windows and three windows were shattered. Stolen property consisted of laptop computers, cameras and jewelry. Three suspects were arrested for being responsible in two of the cases. The new 2013 weekly average in residential burglaries is 5.5.

We had a couple of incidents last week where neighbors called the Sheriff’s Station to inquire if a burglary had occurred on their street only to find out that they observed suspicious activity at the time and did not call 911 immediately. In our partnership with residents in making Cerritos safer, we need to rely on the “eyes and ears” of the neighborhoods to  accomplish this. Calling immediately will allow deputies to quickly respond to your incident and determine if unlawful activity is in fact occurring. Please call. Don’t hesitate.

Commercial burglaries increased from one to four last week. All four of the recent crimes were in two separate fitness centers and all involved lockers where locks were removed. Wallets, credit cards, keys, gym bags, cash and ID were taken. The 2013 weekly average in “other structure”/commercial burglaries is 2.6.

Vehicle burglaries dropped from nine to eight last week. Six crime scenes were in high-volume commercial parking lots. Seven of the vehicles were SUVs.  Driver’s licenses, passports, sunglasses, backpacks, MP3 Players, cash, clothing and a social security card were reported missing. The new 2013 weekly average in vehicle burglaries is 8.5.

Why let a quarter inch of glass protect your property? A thief can break your window and steal your property in three seconds. Remember; if you leave it don’t be surprised if it is not there when you return to your vehicle.

Vehicle thefts were up from five to six last week. Five were from high-volume commercial parking lots. Two SUVs, two Hondas, an Audi and a Nissan were taken. The 2013 weekly average in vehicle thefts is now 3.2.

The best method to immediately display that your vehicle is protected from theft is the use of a visible deterrent such as a steering wheel lock. This inexpensive “insurance policy” can cost $30-$50, and tells the commonly pressed for time and lazy thief that another target would be more appealing.

Go to www.safercerritos.com for an extensive library of crime prevention tips, disaster preparedness information, and a variety of links to other pertinent sites.