Remove valuable items warns PSNI

A number of incidents that occurred during hours of darkness have been reported in recent days. These had included vehicles being entered and ransacked, with items such as sat navs, a camera and money among items stolen.

A police spokesman said: “Cars should always be locked and all valuables should be removed, even if it is parked close to your home or in your own driveway.

“Leaving valuables, such as your handbag, wallet, CD player, laptop or phone on view in your vehicle is like an open invitation to opportunist thieves. If they see something valuable on view, they will simply break the window to get it.

“Taking just a few moments can significantly improve your chances of not becoming a victim of this type of crime. Improved car security features such as alarms, immobilisers and tracking devices can also help protect your vehicle and your valuables.

“As it only takes a matter of seconds to break into a car, we would also urge the public to promptly report all suspicious activity they notice near vehicles, or car alarms that have been activated, as this will help to deter and help us to detect those involved in this type of crime.”