McIntyre Matters

Residential Burglary Increase‏

From:	CharMeck.org (webrequests@ci.charlotte.nc.us)
Sent:	Thu 10/30/08 3:12 PM
To:	miccore@hotmail.com

**This is a DO NOT REPLY address*

Crime alert for North Tryon Divison Response Area 1 and the following neighborhoods;

Shamrock Gardens, Barrington Oaks, Hope Park, Shamrock Hills and Shannon Park

Burglaries

The North Tryon Division, Response Area 1, has seen an increase in residential break-ins. Officers assigned to the area are working diligently to identify and arrest  suspects and work with neighborhoods and community leaders to minimize their risk of victimization.

• In most cases the crimes are occurring between 7:30 a.m and 6:00 p.m.
• Residents are returning home from work and finding their homes broken into  
• Some juveniles have been seen peering into windows or lurking in yards
• When they see someone inside the residence they flee without taking property

Anatomy of Burglaries

Here is what we are seeing:

• Increased incidents of burglaries in the Shamrock Gardens, Barrington Oaks, Hope Park, Shamrock Hills and Shannon Park areas
• Most of the burglaries are being reported by residents who left home around 7:00 a.m. in the morning and returned home around 6:00 p.m.
• Suspects are smashing windows or kicking in doors to make entry
• Items taken include laptop computers, cell or cordless phones, video gaming equipment and accessories, cash and coinage

To combat this rise in crime we have increased our police presence in the area during the time burglaries are occurring. We have targeted locations we believe to be fencing the stolen merchandise. We have increased our efforts in identifying juveniles who appear to be skipping school. We are also targeting our known repeat offenders, i.e. making frequent contacts and home visits with them, ascertaining their whereabouts and areas they frequent in an effort to determine if they are or have been in our problem locations.

We are asking that residents in these areas call 911 if they observe suspicious person(s), especially school age juveniles during the times they should be in school.

We are asking the media outlets to assist us by putting out this information  to the Charlotte Community.

If you have any non emergency  information related crime or criminal activity in your neighborhood please contact the North Tryon Division office at

(704) 336-8398

 In 2007, a career thief, who is now serving a long prison sentence, took a camera crew around Charlotte and showed them some of the homes he had broken into and why he chose those particular homes.  This tour was conducted with police escort and was part of the criminal's cooperation with authorities in order to receive a lighter prison sentence.  The tour was shown on television in the spring of 2008.

The criminal provided advice on several things homeowners can do to deter a thief from breaking into their home or from finding valuables once he was inside the home.  Below is some of the advice he gave: 

• Closing all of the blinds deters a thief. A thief likes to peer through the windows and get comfortable with the situation before breaking in.
• Leaving a loud television on also deters a thief because the sound make him nervous.
• This thief would knock on doors dressed as a handyman wearing coveralls to appear as if he's looking for odd jobs such as yard work. Sometimes he would even carry a rake. He would knock on a door and, if someone answered, would ask if they needed any yard work done. If no one answered the door, he would hide behind the house and wait 30 minutes before breaking in. He always waited that long because if a neighbor had seen him and called the police, the police normally arrived within 30 minutes. If the police caught him hiding behind the house, the worst he could be charged with was trespassing.
• This thief especially liked homes with tall shrubs near the windows, so he could break in without being seen.
• In homes with motion sensors in interior doorways, the thief would simply kick his way through the wall between the studs instead of using the doorway.
• This thief always headed straight for the master bedroom and looked for valuables in jewelry boxes, desk drawers,etc.
• This thief always looked for small items that were valuable.
• Sometimes he would accidentally set off the security system and flee.  He would often see the police driving to the home as he was making his escape.  Since he was walking down the sidewalk dressed as a handyman with a rake over his shoulder, he didn't appear suspicious.

PP