Police tell Corona del Mar residents to lock doors, set alarms

Newport Beach Police are reminding residents to lock their doors, turn on outdoor lights, set their security alarms and report any suspicious people when they leave the house to avoid becoming burglary victims.

Over the past several months burglary detectives have started to connect the dots in home burglaries happening between 5 and 8 p.m. in Corona del Mar.

Happening once every two to four weeks, the burglar reportedly waits for people to leave the home, then breaks in and steals items such as jewelry, watches, firearms and cash. All the thefts occurred when the residents were not at home.

Police did not release the information to the public till a TV reporter who lives in the area asked about the thefts in response to tips from neighbors. Detectives felt it would be an appropriate time to let the public know without hurting the investigation, Lt. Bill Hartford said.

None of the linked reports were robberies, which are crimes against people by fear or force. A burglary is a property crime. Burglaries in Newport Beach were up by only one or two reports this year compared with last, Hartford said.

The information that needs to go out is common sense stuff, Hartford said. Police urge residents to lock all doors and windows, turn on appropriate lighting, set alarm systems — several victims had home alarm systems that were not activated — and always report suspicious people or situations in the neighborhood. Many people don’t make the “suspicious person” calls because they’re worried they may not know what is or isn’t questionable, but Hartford said they can call 911 any time and an officer will check it out.