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KAYSVILLE — Police in Kaysville are seeing a rise in car burglaries during the holiday season, and many of these crimes easily could have been avoided.
Residents have reported more than a dozen cases of vehicle burglaries in the past couple of weeks. Police say unlocked car doors account for half of those incidents.
Ryanne Whicker thought living in Kaysville made her immune to crime.
"It's Kaysville. It's safe," she said.
She couldn't believe she and her boyfriend fell victim to a crime. Someone stole everything out of the glove box and out of the center console of her boyfriend's vehicle, she said.
The stolen items included about $2,500 worth of gift cards.
"I know there are lots of people in Kaysville that leave their vehicles unlocked," Whicker said. "He usually locks it but he was leaving in 15 minutes."
"These are generally crimes of opportunity, and the opportunity was found," explained Lt. Paul Thompson of the Kaysville Police Department.
As Whicker learned, these crimes of opportunity can happen anywhere and can easily be prevented. "It was kind of a mistake," she admitted. "We need to just lock up and be careful."
Police also advise people to keep gifts and valuables in the trunk or don't leave them inside a vehicle at all.
