Echo Hills Neighborhood Assoc.

Safety Tips from CMPD

Safety Tips from CMPD

Across the city, there are several neighborhoods experiencing increases in property crimes and sometimes it seems like an area may be "plagued" with crimes being committed such as auto theft and citizens having their cars broken into or items stolen from vehicles.



Recently, in one of the Providence Division's neighborhoods a citizen had their vehicle stolen from their driveway. Within a couple of days the car was located in north Charlotte, parked in a driveway along with another stolen vehicle. An 18 year old man was arrested after confessing to taking both vehicles.



The suspect talked quite openly with the auto theft investigator and I thought it was extremely important to share some of his comments with our residents. I have removed a couple of items of information in order to protect the identity of the victims in these incidents, but the facts have not been changed. The italicized section was compiled from email correspondence with the case investigator and from the case report.





He first told me that he got the idea to steal cars from the movies, Fast and Furious and Gone in 60 seconds. He then stated the reason he chose to go the Myers Park area was that most people there have nice cars.

He said "people over there always leave their vehicles unlocked with the keys somewhere inside." This particular suspect attends a nearby high school so he knew a little about the area. Some victims feel it is easier to leave their cars unlocked, so if someone enters the car they do not have to break the window, therefore causing less damage.

He chose that area (described by the suspect as Myers Park, although the theft did not actually happen within the recognized boundaries of that neighborhood) because he knew that a lot of times people would leave their cars unlocked with the keys inside. He also said that there were nice cars on that side of town.

The suspect rode to the area in a vehicle driven by another subject. He found a luxury car parked in the driveway of a residence. He walked up to the car and opened the unlocked door. He then found a key inside the glove box. He took the key then got back in his friend's vehicle and rode back over to another part of town. He said that he and the other subject waited and then went back over to the same residence. This time our suspect got into the luxury car and drove off.

He said he rode over to another neighborhood and parked the car.

After that successful theft, they went to get another vehicle. They went to the same area of town. This time they found another luxury vehicle. The door was unlocked. The suspect found a key in the console. He started the vehicle and drove off.

The suspect said that he drove the second vehicle to an apartment complex off North Tryon Street and parked it. He found a shot gun in the trunk of the second vehicle. He told me he took it out of the car and hid it at a vacant house beside his own. He took turns driving the two vehicles. He put about $10 worth of gas in each. He eventually parked them at the home where they were recovered by officers. He had given a relative both keys to the cars to hold.

The suspect in this case was arrested on two counts of auto theft. He was able to bond out.





I specifically underlined a few parts of the above narrative to draw attention to a recurring theme. All of your vehicles should be locked and secured. All items of any value should be removed from a vehicle or stored in a location completely out of sight.

It is absolutely true that there have been vehicles broken into by breaking a window and nothing apparently taken, but that type of theft is the exception and not the rule. Choosing to break a window and possibly alert a homeowner and cause injury to the suspect themselves is an unnecessary risk when there isn't anything of value visible in the car.

This young thief went to an area where he believed he was going to find nice cars left unsecured by their owners. He also felt confident that he was going to be able to enter those unlocked vehicles and locate a spare key. He was successful twice in one night!

I was asked by the case investigator to remind all of you that many cars sold today come with a valet key. On high end vehicles, this should be considered standard. I personally drive a Honda vehicle and mine came with a valet key, as did my wife's Nissan vehicle. Neither of which would be considered luxury vehicles. If you're not sure you have one, go and check your glove box. The key may be in a folder with your owner's manual. You might be surprised to find that you've been leaving a spare key in your car every night. Often these valet keys have limited function, such as not being able to unlock a trunk or glove box, but every single one of them will allow a thief to drive away with your car.



Lastly, I cannot stress enough to citizens that you have to be mindful of what you leave in your vehicles. When sunglasses cost $200 and Ipod music players run $199 to $299, everyday items are an enticement to break into your car and make the criminal endeavor worthwhile for the thief. In one of the cases cited above, our thief not only drove away with a luxury car, but got a shotgun as well. He stored the weapon at a vacant home. Fortunately for all of us, this young suspect was cooperative and surrendered the shotgun to officers the night the vehicles were located. He could have easily sold that weapon on the street or it could have been found and taken by someone poking around at that vacant home. It could have been found by a child.



If a thief has the desire and knowledge, they can steal your car no matter what steps you take to stop them. However, most larcenies from auto and auto thefts are not the work of highly organized criminal syndicates as portrayed in the movies our suspect cited as his inspiration, but rather they are crimes of opportunity committed by low level criminals. Some basic preventative measures can prevent the overwhelming majority of property crimes being committed across our city.



* Lock your doors.
* Remove items of value from your vehicles or secure them out of sight.
* Do not leave spare keys in your vehicle. If you wish to use the valet key provided, keep it in your home and take it with you when you go out to dinner or whatever function you anticipate using it at.





Sgt. Rich Stahnke

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department

Providence Division

Soliciting

On 09/19/2006 around 1700 hours, Officer Harrington of the Providence Division responded to the 1900 block of Shoreham Drive in reference to a suspicious person. A resident in that block had been a victim of a burglary just a few months ago and was having a problem with a door to door salesperson. The description of the suspicious person is as follows:



White male

20-25 years

Muscular Build (athletic)

6-2 in Height

Short brown hair

Casual clothing, light blue shirt, with cargo shorts and white and black athletic shoes.

Described as well spoken and attractive.



Resident advised that the male subject was going door to door indicating that he was raising money for his baseball team at UNCC. The subject mentioned that he lived in the area, and that his father was an orthopedic surgeon. When the homeowner questioned the individual, he became irate and started to slander the homeowner. The name given by the Male was a "Casey Harmon".

The weird part about the call is that the male knew what state the woman grew up in, and the exact name of the High School she attended. The woman slammed the door and called 911. The citizen also took the step of calling out to UNCC and spoke with the Coach for the Baseball team, and he advised that no person by that name is on the team.

A second incident happened in Foxcroft and the female resident stated that the young man had blonde hair but the build is the same. This guy was very insistent and pushy with her and she ended up slamming the door in his face.





I do not recommend opening your doors to anyone you do not know and are not expecting. Ignore the door bell or speak to the person through a closed and secure door. If you encounter a pushy and aggressive individual such as this, call 911. Please be on the lookout for this male in particular. His knowledge of the homeowner is cause for concern. His obvious ruse of soliciting money for a baseball team indicates that he is not collecting money for any legitimate purpose and his door to door stops is cover for other activities such as scouting homes for future burglaries.





Sgt. Rich Stahnke

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department

Providence Division