Nothing will dampen the holiday spirit quicker than being a victim of theft or burglary.  Over the last few weeks there have been a couple incidents reported within Southfield Estates which we should all be aware of.  Multiple cars have been broken into, and  an unknown person was reported to be acting suspiciously and approaching residences. Please don’t hesitate to alert your neighbors and the police department if you observe people , vehicles or activity  which looks suspicious.  Call 911 or the Sandwich Police Department at  (508) 888-1212.  Keep an eye out for our community and neighbors. If you see something , say something. 

Note: If you were in the area of the Widow Coombs Walk and Moon Compass Lane intersection on the evening of Friday, Dec. 15th and observed unusual pedestrian or vehicle activity in that area please contact us here. If you have video surveillance footage in that area for that evening, that may be helpful as well.   

Note: There were multiple reports that cars in the neighborhood had been broken into in November.  If you were in the area of the Bourne Hay Road and Abigail’s Way intersection on the evening of Wednesday, Nov. 15th and observed unusual pedestrian or vehicle activity in that area please contact us here. If you have video surveillance footage in that area for that evening, that may be helpful as well.   

Remember : Please don’t hesitate to alert your neighbors and the police department if you observe people , vehicles or activity  which looks suspicious in our community.  Call 911 or the Sandwich Police Department at  (508) 888-1212.  Keep an eye out for our community and neighbors. If you see something , say something.  Our Sandwich police department is not too busy to address your report or concern. It is better to report a harmless activity than to be a victim or to have one of our community be victimized.

Here are a few common sense ideas to help with Community Holiday Safety!

Holiday Safety Tips to Prevent Being a Victim of Burglary:

• Be sure to lock all doors and windows when leaving your house even for a few minutes.
• We all love holiday displays but be careful of the way you display your Christmas tree and gifts in a public facing window, you can become a target by allowing gifts to be visible from outside your home or from the street. 
• Don’t make it obvious you are away from home, tell-tale signs include outdoor lights left on 24 hours a day, newspapers piling up at the end of the driveway, mailbox left open with uncollected mail, advertising flyers on the front door, uncleared driveways and walkways.  .
• Ask your neighbor to collect the mail and paper, have a landscaper or neighbor’s child clear the snow from driveways and walkways. You can find inexpensive electric timers which keep the lights on in the evening and off during the day, giving the impression that someone is home.
• During the holiday season, we all have celebrations, parties and dinner events to attend and shopping trips to make.  This leaves your residence un-attended for short periods. Remember to put on porch lights and leave a couple interior lights on, you can even leave a radio or television on making it appear your still home.
• It may seem to work in the movies, but don’t hide spare keys under rocks, in flower pots, or on door ledges. If you need to leave spare keys around give a spare key to a neighbor you trust, or maybe a family member who lives locally.
• Avoid running extension cords out through windows or doors where they would require that you leave the windows or doors unlocked and open. This makes for a perfect and easy entry into your home. If your exterior displays require power cords to be run from inside your residence out thru windows and doors, remove those extension cords while you are gone!
• After the holidays don’t pile up the empty boxes from your new TV, computers or other expensive gift items on the curb for garbage collection. Your inviting unwanted attention of potential burglars by leaving these signs out for all to see.  Cut up all these boxes, or at least break the boxes down, alternatively, you could run them down to the transfer station yourself.
• Avoid social media posts which would disclose the timings of your whereabouts , your departures and arrivals , your vacations and overnights away. These type posts easily can be used by burglars to determine the best time to approach your home.  

 These are a few easy steps you can take to reduce the risk of your home becoming a target.

Tips on Automobiles Safety

• Not all vehicles have the luck of being safely tucked into a garage, please remember that in vehicles parked outside at your residence keep the vehicle locked and be sure your vehicle windows are rolled all the way up when left unattended.  Even in the driveway where you feel confident in the vehicles security.
• Avoid leaving any possessions and auto accessories out in plain sight. Never leave items out and easily seen , use your trunk or glove box or console to keep items out of sight.
• Avoid leaving your remote garage door opener in a automobile which is outside the garage. Access to your garage door opener provides access to your garage and possibly the rest of your home. 
• Remember to lock your glove box , don't make it easier for a thief by leaving things unlocked.   

Personal Safety  

• While out in public, always take time and initiative to assess your environment frequently. Be alert for people exhibiting strange behavior to you or performing actions that seem unusual. If you do not like the way something looks, it is probably for a reason.  Follow your instincts report what you are seeing.

Our Community Safe and Secure 

• It just takes a few extra moments to be observant and recognize something may be out of place and be proactive in keeping our community and neighbors safe and sound in Southfield. 
• Remember to check in on our community members who are older and may be less mobile , check to see they are OK and keep an eye out for unusual activity around their homes. Check in with them to ensure all is well.   

If you have some information which may be helpful in the cases referred to above, or if you would like to discuss this topic further we would all welcome the discussion!