JCSO offers tips on protecting property

By Pete Kendall/reporter@trcle.com

On Nov. 9, Johnson County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a burglary of a habitation in the 2500 block of Charles Avenue in Burleson. The victim returned home to discover that suspects had entered his residence by prying open a patio door and had ransacked several areas of the residence, stealing several articles of jewelry.

That’s one of almost countless examples of crimes in unincorporated portions of Johnson County reported to authorities in recent months.

Three investigators work an average of 45 each per month this time of year.

Not every case is solved, partly because property owners have made it virtually impossible for authorities to locate the stolen property.

Capt. Troy Fuller recounted a few more incidents.

“On Nov. 12, deputies responded to the 5300 block of County Road 10 in Alvarado regarding a burglary of a habitation,” Fuller said. “The victim returned home and found the suspects had kicked in the back door and removed several items of jewelry, including rings, bracelets, watches and ear rings.

“On Nov. 14, deputies responded to the 2100 block [of Farm-to-Market Road] 2135 in Cleburne in reference to the theft of $1,500 to $20,000. There were no signs of forced entry into the residence, which may indicate the perpetrators of the crime had access to the residence. The victim reported she was missing several items of personal jewelry but also heirlooms passed on by relatives.”

Christmas is coming and so, it appears, are the thieves.

“Reports of property crimes are consistently among the highest reported crimes in the nation and among the most difficult crimes for investigators to resolve,” Fuller said. “In those recent cases here, the victims were left to feel not only vulnerable but also angry that they can’t replace the items. This time of year is when you begin to see the increase of both thefts and burglaries. It’s almost staggering the number of vehicle burglaries reported in November and December in the different shopping malls. High-dollar electronics are left in cars. The No. 1 product to be stolen is a GPS system.

“It’s sad but true that the days of running to town for a few minutes and leaving the doors unlocked are over. You’re opening a window of opportunity for thieves to enter your residence. It usually involves products, but today thieves are going even further and stealing identities.”

Simple solutions combat the thievery, Fuller said.

“Make sure you take the extra seconds to secure your residence, and lock the out buildings on your property. In some cases, that doesn’t help. But there are numerous cases where thieves kick in a door, and that draws the attention of a neighbor who calls the police. In some cases, neighbors get involved and hold people until deputies get there. A lot of times, it may only prevent the theft from happening. But that’s a lot better than coming home and finding your stuff gone.

“If you have an alarm, make sure you set it. That only takes a few seconds to do. Whether you live in the city or a rural area, close and lock the gate if you have one. In most cases, thieves won’t enter property with a locked gate. If you’re shopping, secure your items in the trunk of the car, out of view. Unfortunately, agencies put out this information every year, and every year there are increases in the number of vehicle burglaries, especially this time of year.

“There is one definite way of allowing investigators to help you. That’s by taking the time to inventory your belongings. It should include photographs, serial numbers, any type of identifying markings, where the item was purchased, and its value. Keep the information in a safe place.”

With the proper vital information, investigators can solve the property crimes.

“Law enforcement agencies share information,” Fuller said. “Pawn brokers are more responsible now than ever. There are a lot of good ones out there trying to run a business right. They’re more than willing to share information. It’s always our focus to vindicate the victim and get stuff back. But as lot of times, we’ll have tables full of property, and you can’t identify who owns it.”

An antitheft Web site, www.mythings.com, will aid a property owner in storing identifying information.

Multiple thefts of jewelry locally indicate that many property owners aren’t using safety deposit boxes or safes.

“A safe deposit box is the best way. A properly anchored safe is going the extra mile,” Fuller said. “Some people put their valuable jewelry in a jewelry box. It’s just a target. But I’ve seen people do creative things to hide valuables.”

Jewelry thefts have increased lately, Fuller, because jewelry is easiest to fence or sell.

“It could show up at a flea market,” he said. “I’ve seen $9,000 rings sold for $100. We’ve had jewelry and guns show up at pawn shops. A lot of the jewelry is not going to have a serial number.”

But if it’s heirloom jewelry, “photographs are great,” Fuller said. “The one thing about jewelry is that most of it has something unique. We’ve been able to recover property because the owner could say it had some type of flower cluster with a stone or that one of the leaves was slightly bent. We’ve had people draw sketches of jewelry that was stolen. If you have firearms, write down the serial numbers and take pictures.”

Johnson County investigators have leads in some of the stolen property cases, Fuller said, but the number of cases without leads is “way, way too many.”