Police want to put stop to burglaries

[TexasStooge]

More than 65 committed since end of March said to be related

By LaKISHA LADSON / The Dallas Morning News

IRVING, Texas - Police are relying on residents' eyes and ears to catch people who have burglarized more than 65 Irving homes in south and central Irving since the end of March.

"We do patrol as much as possible in and out of the neighborhoods," said police spokesman David Tull. "But we count on calls from citizens."

In almost one-third of the offenses, vehicles have been stolen as well.

Irving police also believe the same burglars are operating in Arlington. On Thursday, seven homes were burglarized in Irving alone, Officer Tull said.

The burglars strike at any time, but the most popular times have been the middle of the day when people are at work or on Sundays. The burglars knock to see if anyone is home, police say. If no one answers, they kick in a door and make off with property that's easy to carry and easy to get rid of – by selling or pawning – such as electronics, jewelry, guns and video game systems and games.

Some of the stolen vehicles have been found nearby, leading police to believe they are used for transporting goods out of the house. The suspects, believed to be Hispanic, are targeting mostly Hispanic homes. But police say any home is susceptible.

"This may just be ... simply that's their comfort zone," Officer Tull said. "There's still other races involved as well. We can't nail it down just yet."

Often, residents see strangers or strange situations, but they fail to report them, said Stephan Granberry with the community services division of the Police Department.

"Don't worry about whether or not you're going to bother us," Sgt. Granberry said. "Call us. Let us figure if it was something."

"We want people to take notice of strangers in their neighborhood, of strange vehicles, people who seem to be loitering around in the same area for a long time."

In response to the burglaries, which may have begun at the end of March or earlier, two detectives are now devoted to these cases full time, said Jeff Spivey, a police sergeant over criminal investigations.

The Irving areas hit the most are north of State Highway 183 between Story and Belt Line roads south of Finley Road; and south of State Highway 183 between O'Connor and Carl roads, Sgt. Spivey said.

Irving police recently sent a notice out on its neighborhood watch discussion list. Some groups are already on alert.

Crime watch captains have sent bulletins to residents of the Irving Hospital District Neighborhood Association, said Jan Bemis, vice president. And the burglaries will be discussed at the next meeting.

"It spreads pretty quickly with the neighborhood grapevine," Mrs. Bemis said. She said they knew about it before the police and newspaper reports.

A retired police officer mentioned car thefts at a recent meeting of the Arts District Neighborhood Association, said vice president Kim Limberg. They don't have a neighborhood watch program in place.

"I think that's something we might look into," she said.

Anyone with information should call the nonemergency police number at 972-721-2518. If an incident is in progress or just occurred, call 911.

E-mail lladson@dallasnews.com

or call 972-594-7198 ext. 2001

Do

Record property serial numbers.

Engrave your driver's license number on valuables, including video games.

Tell neighbors if you'll be gone on vacation.

Have police perform security surveys of your home.

Use locks and alarms.

Go home during lunch.

Don't

Leave extra keys where they're easily accessible.

Hide valuables in common places.

Let shrubs block the view of people coming and going from the house.

Enter a home if a door has been kicked in. Instead, call police from somewhere safe.