Thefts from unlocked vehicles in North Bay continues to be an issue; as police say it's on the rise during the summer months.
If it's not locked, don't be shocked if your vehicle is targeted for theft, regardless of where you live
"The thefts from vehicles are everywhere in our city," said Staff Sergeant Rick Dubeau, North Bay Police.
"It looks like because of the nice weather, people are just walking along and trying car doors and whichever vehicles are unlocked they are going in and taking whatever is accessible."
Dubeau said it's not uncommon to see the numbers rise in the summer, and incidents tend to happen overnight. He adds it's not just experienced criminals committing the crime.
"It can be people who are actually targeting vehicles, but it can also be two buddies walking across the street and saying 'look at this, this car is unlocked' so it can be people who have never committed crimes before and are just opportunists," he explained.
People CTV spoke with to say they are noticing the increase.
"One of my friends had his truck broken in to and they stole cigarettes, a GPS and a bunch of other things."
"It's bad. Lots of vehicle break-ins. It's easy prey"
Dubeau said catching the thief is not easy.
"It would be too onerous of us to send our identification officers to go get finger prints because we don't have any suspects even to collect it from. Without any leads it's very difficult to catch them," he said.
Dubeau urges people to give police a call if you see unfamiliar faces in your neighborhood coming in and out of driveways. He also reminds motorists to keep personal belongings out of sight and make sure the door is locked before heading inside.
