'Tis the season, unfortunately, for packages disappearing from porches and thefts from cars.
Just last month, the Helena Police Department recorded 73 thefts in the city, which is more than this time last year.
Helena resident Robin Feist knows this firsthand—her mailbox was broken into. Now she takes extra steps to stop that from happening again.
“So now we've just installed more ring cameras to be able to monitor it, and if somebody's at the door, we get a notification, and I can actually talk to them and say ‘hey, what are you doing?” Feist said.
Cameras are one option. Another—keep an eye on your package’s delivery schedule.
“I'm always tracking them, but then if I'm not gonna be home, I always ask a neighbor, ‘hey, I'm getting a package, and I'm not gonna be home for a while, can you pick it up?’” Feist said.
Helena Police Department say they expect to see more package theft this season, especially as people order more online.
“We will see porch piracy, which is kind of the nomenclature used for it, that'll probably rise up primarily because there's more packages coming, so there's just a lot more people getting orders in, and they can pile up on the porch,” said Lt. Adam Shanks with the Helena Police Department.
Another suggestion—invest in a locked drop box for packages.
“They really just drive through the neighborhood and look for packages on people’s doorsteps,” Shanks said. “This is usually during mid-day, when people are at work.”
Packages on porches aren’t the only things thieves are targeting. Lieutenant Shanks said the department always sees a number of thefts from cars.
“They just go by checking door to door, and they literally just walk down the streets, and they check for doors that are unlocked,” Shanks said. “If they find a door that’s unlocked, they look through the inside and look for anything they may deem as valuable.”
A simple way to deter them is to always lock your car. Just a few things to keep in mind to keep items out of the hands of thieves this holiday season.
