Golden Valley Sees Rise in Home Burglaries

Golden Valley Police are seeing an increase in the number of residential burglaries and thefts. Police are asking residents to take precautions and report any suspicious activity by calling 911.

According to police, two men were arrested because a neighbor called to report a burglary in action. The neighbor watched as a man crawled into a nearby home and spotted another man in a getaway car outside. When police arrived the burglar was inside and was caught with stolen property in hand. The driver was arrested too.

Golden Valley Police first noticed this about a month ago in the northeast section of the city. According to a press release, in one overnight incident, a suspect entered a home through an unlocked garage service door and stole items, including the homeowner’s wallets, cell phones, keys to their vehicles, a 52-inch television, and one of their vehicles. During the burglary, which happened in May, the victims and their children were asleep in the home.

Now, police say residential crimes are more widespread. Police are reminding homeowners to lock their doors, stating almost 50 percent of the residential burglaries that happened in Golden Valley last year were into homes that were unlocked.

Golden Valley Police offer the following crime prevention tips:

• Be particularly alert and responsive to noises or activity in your neighborhood. CALL 911 IMMEDIATELY if you see or hear unusual activity. All calls are prioritized and you will be put on hold if necessary, so don’t worry about “bothering the police.”
• Make sure your doors and windows are securely closed and locked at night. Keep purses out of sight of windows and doors. This includes the house, garage, and vehicles.
• When you are in the backyard, remember to close and lock the front door and garage door if out of sight.
• Light up the outside of your home from dusk until dawn every night. Make sure the light is an even, low-level light that doesn’t glare toward the street too much. Lighting will discourage prowlers, assist police officers who patrol your area, and allow your neighbors to see each others’ houses.
• Store ladders and other tools in a secure location so they can’t be used to break into your home or your neighbors.
• If you wake up to hear an intruder in your house, get out of the house if possible. If not possible, stay quiet until it is safe to get to a phone to call 911. If you are unable to speak because you are afraid of making noise, call 911 and leave the phone off the hook.
• If you come home to find a burglary, do not enter your home and call 911 immediately. Do not wait to report the burglary and please do not clean up the burglary before police arrive.