Victoria residents are concerned about people suspiciously checking car doors to see if they have been unlocked around the Fairfield neighbourhood.
Around 2 a.m., Victoria Police Department reported getting a call about someone trying door handles in a driveway in the zero block of Moss Street on Nov. 21.
“There was a significant time delay in reporting, and there were no identifiable characteristics in the still image provided, but it appears someone else in the neighbourhood may have had a similar incident,” said police in a statement.
After the report was issued, the investigating officer asked the oncoming night shift to patrol the area.
Sandy Brownridge, who has lived in Fairfield for more than five years, made one of the reports as she saw her neighbour’s new Toyota Rav getting checked. She also posted about the experience on Facebook to warn her neighbours.
“It prompts people to go out and check their vehicle or to lock their vehicle,” said Brownridge. “So don’t leave stuff in your car and lock it because there’s generally, I’m sure by today there’s gonna be more than just my file to the police.”
Madeline Duke, Brownridge’s neighbour, was glad she was able to catch a video of the activity.
“I was definitely shaken up. It made me feel, grateful for the security camera and also very nervous about taking my dog out now late at night because I understand that this person is doing this in the neighbourhood quite frequently,” said Duke.
Duke has many questions about the actively as she said it’s “definitely suspicious.” She’s shocked that this has happened twice since she’s lived in Fairfield for a little over a year.
“I’d also like to know what we can do as a community around the block watch or do something more to increase prevention of this kind of thing, and I’m curious about what kind of person is doing this?”
VicPD told Black Press Media in a statement that “it’s important to mention that there is likely underreporting of vehicle break-ins, especially if there is no damage to the vehicle and/or the items stolen were not of high value. People may report if they are making an insurance claim for damage or an item like a laptop or something valuable is stolen. We encourage people to report suspicious circumstances like someone trying door handles in the instance they are occurring (if possible) so that there is a likelihood of identifying the person and so that we can deploy resources if we see an uptick of this activity in a certain area.”
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