Thieves target Pukekohe south area and Pokeno

‘‘Most burglars are opportunist and may only steal from your when they see a likely target, like a shed with no lock.’’

The latest burglary and car crime trends for Franklin show an increase in offences occurring in the Pukekohe urban south area and in Pokeno.

When we talk about car crime, this is cars getting broken into to steal contents inside or theft of the car itself, which is less common.

In Pukekohe south, the Manukau Rd area has had burglaries to commercial buildings and yards at night whilst on the side roads off Wellington St and Queen St, we have had burglaries to homes and sheds plus cars have been broken into.

In Pokeno, the subdivisions have targeted, again on new been late evenings and overnight.

Many of the burglaries to homes in the Pukekohe south areas have mostly been to sheds or garages, where items like bikes or tools have been taken, or property has just been taken that was left outside.

What can you do to prevent being a victim? Lock your garage or sheds with a good lock - not something flimsy that can be broken with a bit of force. Don’t leave items outside overnight like bikes, lawnmowers etc. Most burglars are opportunist and may only steal from your when they see a likely target, like a shed with no lock.

And please mark your property and record the serial number or identifying features, definitely include power tools and garden tools.

If you’ve marked it with your initials or maybe painted it, then we can use that to identify it later if we find it at a offender’s house. We are always executing search warrants and finding stolen property stashed at a burglar’s house but don’t know whose it is because no one took the serial number or identified it in any way.

We have a website called SNAP where you can record these items.

If we can’t identify the property we can’t return it or charge someone for stealing it.

The Pokeno offending is mostly cars that have been broken into, either parked on the roadside or on driveways overnight.

Please think about where you park your car, maybe get it right off the road or shut the gates to your driveway if you have them. Car alarms work at night in a quiet street. Don’t leave anything of value visible please.

So be aware this is going on and call 111 if you see anything suspicious.