Hello Lauderhill Family!

Over the past few weeks, I have been reviewing the work your officers do around in our community.  Based on the calls they respond to and the reports they complete, I noticed a trend in vehicular burglaries. Of course, in a perfect world, there would be no crime. Yet in our imperfect world, we are giving criminals the perfect opportunities to commit crimes.

You might be saying to yourself, “Okay Chief, what do you mean? What’s happening?”

A commonality in several of our reports: the car doors were left unlocked! With valuables left overnight, criminals aren’t looking for a specific item, but rather any item that may be of value. These burglaries are called “Crimes of Opportunity.”

Prevent Crimes of Opportunity! Use these tips and take action to help US, NOT the criminals!

• Always lock your doors and windows, even during a “5-minute errand.”
• Do not leave anything in plain sight.
• Do not leave recently purchased items or gifts in plain view.
• Store packages out of sight in your locked trunk.
• If you want to continue shopping after stashing packages, move the car to another location.
• Do not leave a firearm under the seat, in a center console, or glove box overnight.
• Never leave your wallet or purse unattended in your vehicle, even while you are pumping gas.
• Do not leave personal documents stored in your vehicle. 

When crimes like these happen, we lose more than our possessions. Our sense of security is lost. Taking small measures to be crime-preventative is an easy step in the right direction.

We can't always get back our possessions lost to crime, but we can do everything possible to prevent it from happening in the first place. Let's show ‘em Lauderhill is the wrong target. Follow these simple, effective measures to stop crimes of opportunity.

Yours in service,

Chief Constance Stanley