Thanksgiving holidays begin with rash of car burglaries
For Immediate Release
November 20, 2012
The week leading into the Thanksgiving holiday started with a rash of car burglaries in South Walton. On November 18th and 19th, over 10 vehicles were ransacked by suspects. Victims in the neighborhoods along Montego Avenue, Santa Clara Street and North Andalusia found their vehicles had been subject to the criminal mischief and burglary that occurred in the late evening to early morning hours. Most victims told deputies there was nothing missing from their vehicles that they could see. There were, however, a few who left items in their vehicles such as cameras and gaming equipment. Some vehicles were unlocked or windows were left down while a few car windows were broken to gain access.
The Walton County Sheriff’s Office reminds citizens and visitors to take all valuables out of their vehicles, lock their doors and roll up all windows. Don’t leave any sign that there might be valuables out of sight in your vehicle, such as docking stations or connector cables. While parking vehicles at home, pull up into garages if possible. If parking a vehicle outside, install motion senor lighting. Auto-burglars prefer breaking into cars where they will not observed and choose their targets accordingly. If you have a car alarm, set it and use it. It can be an effective deterrent to an auto-burglar, who most often chooses the easiest target. If burglars have two vehicles to choose from (one with an alarm and one without) they will likely burglarize the one without that is unless you’ve left out valuables they can’t resist.
Remembering tips such as these will help cut down on thieves stealing not only personal belongings and gifts but holiday cheer.
Investigator Wendy C Ammons
Walton County Sheriff’s Office
Public Information Officer/Internal Affairs/Intern Coordinator, Professional Standards Bureau
752 Triple G Road
Defuniak Springs, FL 32433
(850)892-8186-office
