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“Significant” number of vehicles left unlocked
Friday September 5 2008
 
A “significant” number of Orangeville residents are leaving their vehicles unlocked, police say, needlessly putting themselves at risk.
Officers checked nearly 1,000 vehicles between Aug. 28 and Sept. 2 to see if they were locked — an effort known as the Lock It or Lose It campaign — and discovered many were not. Valuables were also left in plain sight on numerous occasions, whether the vehicle was locked or not.
“People don’t want to be victims ... it’s upsetting. It doesn’t matter if they lose $1 in loose change or a $1,000 laptop,” says Const. Scott Davis, who suggests the feeling of victimization is just as lasting.
“These types of incidents are crimes of opportunity. If the opportunity is taken away, the crimes are less likely to happen.”
Since the beginning of May, nearly 350 thefts have been reported to Orangeville police, a large portion of which involve property taken from vehicles. Police believe most thefts occur in the early morning hours.
Thieves have made off with loose change, wallets, laptop computers, GPS units, televisions and more.
Anyone with information about the thefts is asked to contact Orangeville Police Service at 519-941-2522 or call Crime Stopper at 800-222-8477 to leave details anonymously.