10 cars broken into during Snoqualmie Ridge crime spree
February 10, 2010
By Laura Geggel
Law enforcement officials urge residents to lock cars
NEW — 1:22 p.m. Feb. 10, 2010
Thieves broke into 10 cars and stole items from eight of them in a one-night crime spree on Snoqualmie Ridge.
Police are still investigating the break-ins, which occurred overnight between Jan. 25 and 26, Snoqualmie Police Department spokeswoman Becky Munson said. She said police often have difficulty lifting prints from vehicles because of the contours on the car’s shell.
“If we get them, we get partial prints,” Munson said.
Thieves targeted the same Ridge neighborhoods near McBane Avenue Southeast and Hancock Avenue Southeast before, breaking into six cars Dec. 29-30, stealing GPS devices, laptops, briefcases, iPods, stereos and more.
The majority of car break-ins in Snoqualmie Valley happen to cars left unlocked. Of the 60 cars broken into in Snoqualmie in 2009, 37 were unlocked, Munson said.
According to police records, cars broken into at the Snoqualmie Falls parking lot tend to have locked doors. About half of car break-ins in Snoqualmie happen on the Ridge and the other half occur in historic Snoqualmie, she said.
North Bend also has its share of car break-ins, about half of them from unlocked cars. Of the 56 cars broken into in 2009, 27 were unlocked.
People who have more to lose tend to lock their doors, North Bend police reports show. When entering a report, police indicate if the items stolen amount to more than $250. Of 37 car break-ins in which the person lost more than $250, only 32 percent were unlocked.
In contrast, of the 19 in which less than $250 was stolen, 68 percent were unlocked, one item was stolen from an unsecured pick-up truck bed and another involved gas siphoning.
“That means that in only four cases, they forced their way in,” North Bend Police Chief Mark Toner said.
He and Munson advised people to lock their cars and to keep their valuables out of sight.
“I don’t understand it. People think they’re safe out here,” Munson said. “They’re actually surprised when it happens.”
She has a few tips for car owners: don’t leave valuables in your car, park in a well-lit area and get a car alarm.
“If you have (house) lights, turn them on,” Munson said. “A lot of people turn them off up here at night because they’re so close to their neighbors.”
Toner added another nugget of advice. Many drivers leave their garage door opener in the car, an easy item for thieves to take and return at a later date to rob the house. He advised people to park in their garage or to take their garage door opener out of the car at night.
He also asked people to report car break-in, even if nothing is stolen.
“If I know that five people had their cars broken into in this neighborhood, I’ll keep patrolling that neighborhood,” Toner said. “We want people to report it so we can better detect patterns.”
Laura Geggel: 392-6434, ext. 221, or lgeggel@snovalleystar.com.
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