5 Ways To Stop Porch Pirates In Johns Creek

Johns Creek GA

07 December, 2020

2:32 PM

Description

JOHNS CREEK, GA — Online shopping has reached an all-time high due to the coronavirus pandemic as package thieves gear up for the holiday season in Johns Creek and across the country. Johns Creek Lt. Paul Michaud with the Criminal Investigations Division said the department recently conducted several porch theft investigations which resulted in the arrest of two individuals. "We will continue to be diligent in our investigations and pursuit of prosecution of any criminal activity which affects our citizens," Michaud said. "We encourage our citizens to keep up crime prevention techniques such as the neighborhood watch program to deter the criminal element from coming to the City of Johns Creek." Johns Creek Sgt. Tyler Seymour said the department prepares for an increase in these type of cases around the holidays, simply for the large increase in packages being delivered. However, the city doesn't currently have any data showing that the coronavirus has caused an increase in these cases, even though more people are shopping online. "The residents of Johns Creek do a great job of contacting us when they feel something seems suspicious," Seymour said. "As a department, we are committed to working with our citizens to safeguard their property and keep these cases to a minimum." Seymour gave crime prevention tips, including: Form a Neighborhood Watch Program in your communityIf you are expecting package(s) on a specific day, have someone pick them up for you so it shortens the amount of time your package is exposedHave the package(s) delivered to a trusted source who is home a lotHave the package(s) delivered to workGet a P.O box from through the post office or sign up for their Informed Delivery ServiceRequire a signature on delivery Follow your local police department's social media sites and neighborhood sites (Patch, Nextdoor, Ring, etc.) for shared information/alerts Install a security camera(s) or lock boxIf traveling, utilize the local police department's Vacation Watch Program More than 5.5 million Americans have been victimized by package thefts over the past year, according to Finder, a personal finance comparison website, in a study released in November. About $5.4 billion worth of items were stolen in package thefts from November 2019 to November 2020, the Finder determined. Because of the busy online shopping month of December, that number is likely to grow by the end of the year. Fewer people were in the nation's malls on Black Friday, and Cyber Monday is expected to become the busiest online shopping day of all time when all sales are totaled, according to The Associated Press. Overall holiday season sales in 2020 are expected to rise 0.9 percent, with a 36 percent jump in online sales, a study by the research company eMarketer shows. Porch pirates could see a prime opportunity to take advantage of the expected spike in packages left at front doors. They usually get away with it, too. Only 11 percent of victims said the culprits were caught, according to a 2019 study by C+R Research. Who Steals A Package? Men are found to be more likely to be both package thieves and victims of the crime, according to the Finder study. With 5.29 percent of men admitting having stolen a package compared with 0.85 percent of women, men are more than 500 percent more likely to be package thieves than women, the study found. Seventeen percent of men say a package of theirs was stolen during the past year, compared with 11 percent for women. Still, 86 percent of the nearly 2,000 participants in the study said they have not experienced a package theft since this time last year. Prevention Tips Here are five tips Finder shared to help Americans keep from becoming a victim of a package theft: Try curbside pickup: Drive to the store; most of them offer curbside pickup options.Use a post office box: This will ensure the package is handled by a professional at the Canton post office.Video surveillance: Doorbell cameras such as Ring can allow homeowners to scare away the thief in real time.Require a signature: This way, the package cannot go unattended.Have it sent to your workplace: Public places typically have a greater chance of using security cameras.