Don’t Be A Victim! Lock Your Car!

The Town of Orange, as well as most surrounding communities in and around the state, continues to see a rise in the number of thefts from motor vehicles as well as the theft of motor vehicles themselves. A common denominator in almost all these incidents is that the vehicles have been left unlocked.

Besides the theft of personal items, this has also led to the theft of many vehicles with the keys left inside. In addition, within the last two weeks, we have also had three vehicles stolen from local businesses in which the owners had left their vehicles running and unoccupied for a short period of time.

The Orange Police Department would like everyone to be safe and to follow these simple tips: • Do not leave vehicles unattended, both at commercial establishments and in your own driveway. As the weather gets colder, people are tempted to start their vehicles to warm the engine up or keep the engine running when they make a quick stop.

• With the holiday right around the corner, please do not leave packages visible inside your unoccupied vehicles as you do your shopping. Unfortunately, history has shown us that there are people who roam parking lots this time of year looking for easy targets.

• Lastly, please remember to remove keys and valuables from your vehicle and make sure all doors are locked. We encourage everyone to call the police if they see any suspicious activity in their neighborhood. Please do not approach nor confront suspicious persons.

Assistant Chief Max Martins 

Orange Police Department