UPDATE From APD - in past 24 hours, 9 auto burglaries, 2 residential burglaries

UPDATE:

Dear Foothills Area Command Community Leaders,
I had two requests to provide a description of the burglary suspect seen hopping a citizen’s back wall at a home that was burglarized yesterday.  

White male, about 30 years old, wearing denim pants and denim jacket, on foot, average height and weight, curly beard, brown hair with salt and pepper.

Thanks everyone for being alert and looking out for each other.  Our officers appreciate your support!

Jill Garcia, Crime Prevention Specialist
Foothills Area Command, Albuquerque Police Department
12800 Lomas Blvd NE
Albuquerque, NM  87112
jcgarcia@cabq.gov
332-5240 Front Office
323-4644 Direct Line
332-5249 Fax

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Dear Foothills Area Command Community Leaders and Partners,

Our officers need your help! Your support of our officers in the Foothills Area Command is outstanding, and we need your help with crime prevention and burglary prevention.
The Foothills Area Command had a 9 auto burglaries and 2 residential burglaries over the last 24 hours.  Please ‘harden your targets’ by locking up your vehicles and homes.  

Here’s a snapshot of what happened yesterday:

Residential Burglaries:  Our 2 residential burglaries were discovered by homeowners at 1:30 pm and 8:00 pm – remember, daytime hours are when most residential burglaries occur, and on weekdays.  
Both cases were unforced entries; the burglar got lucky and merely had to open the sliding glass door at one home and the bedroom window at another home to gain access to commit these crimes.  

Auto Burglaries:  One of the nine cases yesterday involved the victim leaving the garage door open, which provided access to the unlocked vehicle in the garage that was burglarized.  This is a big ‘red flag’ to me about the safety of the victim/victim’s family – the garage usually has a door to the home and this offender could have entered the home.  Lock up vehicles, keep windows rolled up, keep garage doors closed and secured, remove valuables from vehicles when you exit the vehicle.  If you don’t have a garage available at your home, park in a spot with good lighting and good sight lines.  You want neighbors to be able to see your vehicle and report anything suspicious to police, and you should be able to see your vehicle from your home.

What was stolen? Jewelry worth thousands of dollars, laptops, iPads and liquor were stolen yesterday.
           
What can you do as a citizen to protect yourself?

Lock up!

Look out for your neighbor and report suspicious activity to 242-COPS (2677).  An officer will be dispatched.
If you see something that doesn’t seem normal for your neighborhood, call it in to 242-COPS from a safe place.  
Neighbors – if you see a garage door open in your area, please alert the home owner.  You do not want your block targeted as an easy area for burglars to operate.

The good news:
Our Foothills officers were able to catch one auto burglary suspect and officers were provided a great description of one of the residential burglary suspects.

I hope you can have a conversation with family and neighbors about how to make your vehicles and homes safer and about ‘hardening your targets.’  I will do everything I can to help you – give me a call or send me an email if you want crime prevention information to reduce your odds of being a victim.  Stay safe, and thanks again for all you do for our Foothills team.

Jill Garcia, Crime Prevention Specialist
Foothills Area Command, Albuquerque Police Department
12800 Lomas Blvd NE
Albuquerque, NM  87112
jcgarcia@cabq.gov
332-5240 Front Office
323-4644 Direct Line
332-5249 Fax