Santa, Frosty the Snowman and a reindeer are missing

Take your inflatables into the garage or house at night, say police

With the holidays near, Halton police are advising residents to keep a close eye on their property following a report of stolen lawn decorations in Oakville.

The incident occurred overnight Thursday, a day after Katherine Hall, 21, and her father, John, placed their three inflatable figures in their front yard.

They woke up Friday to discover they had been stolen from their Priory Court property, which is near Glen Abbey Golf Club.

The three missing figures are Frosty the Snowman, Santa Claus and a reindeer. The latter two are four metres high and the other is almost three metres tall.

“My dad and I always put out inflatables every year. The ones we have are pretty big,” said Hall.

“When I woke up in the morning, all three of them were unplugged and gone from the lawn. There were track marks across my grass, but no footprints.”

Hall, whose family has lived at the residence for more than 20 years, filed a police report early Friday.

“Nothing has ever happened like this before … Little kids on the street will come by and look at them. We really enjoy doing it,” said Hall.

While Halton police haven’t received many reports of stolen outdoor decorations, Staff Sgt. Barry Malciw advises people to take precautions when putting them on display outdoors.

For inflatables, people should bring them into the house during the overnight hours.

“Don’t allow them to be in the area overnight for somebody to cause damage to them,” said Malciw.

Residents should also leave their exterior lights on when they go to bed, to keep their property well lit as a further deterrent.

“Obviously, the area is fully-illuminated … that can narrow down people coming to your home, as well, for damage,” he said.

Another way to prevent possible theft or property damage is to stay in contact with your neighbours.

“Have your neighbours on board so everybody can look out for each other and any suspicious activities,” said Malciw.

This was the second time this week the Oakville Beaver was contacted by residents regarding this type of damage and theft.

Dana Caldwell, who resides on Valleyridge Drive, in the Bronte Road/Dundas Street area, alerted the Beaver Tuesday of damage done to an inflatable Yoda, reindeer and three snowmen, as well as destruction of a blow-up Elf on the Shelf and theft of a light-up present decoration.

Caldwell’s six-year-old son, Finn, wrote a letter to Santa in response to the incident.

When I woke up in the morning, all three of them were unplugged and gone from the lawn. There were track marks across my grass, but no footprints. KATHERINE HALL