A home burglary occurs every 15 seconds in the United States. One out of six homes gets burglarized every year. And even though some categories of crime are down, home burglaries are up. Many people feel it is because of the economy while some feel that is on the rise just because it so darn easy to do. And even if a burglar does get caught, which seems unlikely, the penalties are close to laughable. That’s just the way our system is set up.
So burglars see this as a high reward, low risk enterprise. Some police agencies are getting a little frustrated so they are resorting to unusual tactics to help stem the increase in home burglaries. The unusual tactics include talking to burglars and picking their brains to pass the information on to the public.
In Denmark, for example, a region that has seen over a 50% increase in break-ins is passing out questionnaires to the robbers that they catch asking about targets, motives and how they get rid of the stolen goods. Police are hoping that the answers will provide some insights that will prove useful to homeowners in the hopes of lowering the crime rate.
In Alabama recently a local television station, in conjunction with the Sheriff’s department, put together a special report on an insider’s guide to home burglary. The Sheriff’s department provided a convicted burglar to the television station for an interview on techniques used to get into a house, what they’re looking for and how they get rid of what they take.
The burglar said he would have two friends with him. One would stay with the car with two going into the house. They would knock on the front door of the house to see if anybody answers. Since they only do their work when they suspect nobody’s home if there’s no answer-it’s party time.
If they hear a barking dog they leave. If they see security cameras they leave. They only do their business between eight and three because the kids are at school and mom and dad are at work.
They spend no more than five to ten minutes in a house. He told the reporter that he needs a flat head screwdriver and a crowbar and he can get into any house. The sliding glass door in the back is the easiest entry point. A Door Brace is the best way to protect a sliding glass door from being breached.
Once inside the house, the first up is the living room. That’s where the electronics will be. Next up is the master bedroom for jewelry, cash, and even a safe. If he sees handguns or rifles he takes them.
At that point the driver pulls into the garage. They load the stolen goods into the car and off they go to a pawn shop where it takes 30 minutes to sell everything.
He said on a good day he can rob five or six homes in an hour and can make $15,000-$20,000.
Twice during the interview he pointed out that the best thing homeowners can do is to belong to a “Neighborhood Watch” and have people watch out for each other.
Now you know why burglary is on the rise. Security cameras, a barking dog and “Neighborhood Watch” are the best deterrents to home burglary.
The Barking Dog Alarm makes barking and growling sounds to scare away would-be burglars.
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