Tips to keep your neighborhood safe and secure from county watch program
Neighborhood Watch is a crime prevention program, which has a thirty-year history, engages volunteer citizen action to enhance security within our community by encouraging citizens to report suspicious activity in their immediate neighborhoods. In the aftermath of September 11, 2001, the need for strengthening and securing our communities has become even more critical, and Neighborhood Watch groups have taken on greater significance. In addition to serving a crime prevention role, Neighborhood Watch can also be used as the basis for bringing neighborhood residents together to focus on disaster preparedness as well as to focus on evacuation drills and exercises.
IF YOU SEE IT,
REPORT IT:
We all need to stay alert to suspicious persons, vehicles and activities. If you see something suspicious, report it immediately. Get as many details about the vehicle (especially license numbers) as you can and a direction of travel.
Criminals prosper when citizens are afraid to get involved. Don’t be afraid to pick up the phone.
MINERAL COUNTY Sheriff’s Office Non-Emergency number: 406-822-3555
Crimes in Progress (Burglaries, Thefts, Assaults etc): dial 911
Lawn Equipment Theft Prevention
Do not store lawn equipment in open carports.
Most lawn equipment thefts occur when items are in plain view from the road and unsecured.
If your only option is store it there, secure it to a permanent structure using cables and locks.
Take the time to record the serial numbers and mark your equipment with the initials WM (For
WILLIAM) followed by your driver’s license number. This will immediately tell law enforcement who the equipment belongs to when a suspect is stopped.
Do not leave equipment in the yard when taking breaks. It only takes seconds for a thief to exit a vehicle and steal your equipment.
This has happened with items as large as riding mowers.
Keep your equipment in a securely locked storage shed or closed garage. Every security measure you take discourages thieves from victimizing you.
Not taking preventative measures encourages them.
Do not leave any equipment or valuables in the open bed of a truck or trailer unsecured. Cables and locks must be used here as well. Thefts often involve lawn equipment unsecured in a truck or trailer.
Keep garage and storage area doors closed at all times. Thieves drive slowly through neighborhoods peering into garages and sheds then return later to steal what they have seen.
Start a NW group for your area.
Sheriff Ornelas urges you to report suspicious vehicles, persons and activity to law enforcement immediately. Do not wait until you or neighbors are victimized.
Be proactive
not reactive.
Retired citizens and shift workers
Retired citizens and shift workers: watch your neighborhood during the day when others are at work. If something looks suspicious, report it.
Examples of suspicious activities are; a vehicle driving through the area several times slowly and the occupants looking around, unofficial vehicles stopping at mailboxes, vans or pickup trucks backing up to doors or into back yards, teenagers who should be in school wandering through the neighborhood, vehicles parked on sides of secondary roads with no one around them or a driver who looks as if he/she is waiting for someone.
START A NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH PROGRAM IN YOUR HOME NEIGHBORHOOD BE PROACTIVE - CALL BOB MAHON AT 822-3555