Police say ‘Don’t Be a Victim’

From Jan. 1 to Oct. 31, a total of 43 vehicles were reported stolen to the Ponca City Police Department and 26 of those vehicles were unlocked and the keys left inside.
Easily 60 percent of the vehicles stolen before Nov. 1 of this year in Ponca City may have been prevented just by taking the keys and locking the doors.
Another incredibly preventable crime that is reported often is items being taken from unlocked vehicles. Every neighborhood has been affected by this crime. If anything of value is left in a vehicle and it is left unlocked, it is going to be taken. It is only a matter of time.
During the same first 10 months of 2017, there were 165 reports taken by Ponca City Police officers from victims that reported items stolen from within their vehicles. Only 18 of those vehicles were forcibly entered. Many of those 18 victims discovered their vehicle window broken and then reported to the officer that a purse, wallet or electronic device had been left inside of their vehicle and easily visible. Some 89 percent of the victims, 147 of the 165, reported items of value taken from their unlocked cars.
Again, these thefts can be easily prevented by simply not leaving items of value in your vehicles. Police ask that you lock your vehicles and homes each time either are left unattended.