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Keep your cars locked

Officer Jeff Tipton with Durango Police Department talks with a driver. Police are reminding residents to lock their vehicles to prevent theft.

The theft in October of a 1997 Toyota Camry and 18 vehicle break-ins during the same month provide a cautionary tale.

“Keep your vehicle locked,” Durango police Sgt. Jeremiah Lee said Friday. “My experience tells me that the majority were probably left unlocked.”

The Camry, stolen in the vicinity of East Second Avenue and 20th Street, has not been recovered, Lee said.

The break-ins – in driveways and on the street – provided a bonanza for thieves, he said. Cash, tools, checkbooks, credit and debit cards, cellphones and miscellaneous personal items were taken.

In one break-in, $2,000 worth of climbing equipment was lost; in another, $200 in cash and debit and credit cards were swiped; in a third, a $200 camera and a $200 backpack were stolen.

A school district, not in La Plata County, lost its credit card.

Eyeglasses worth $300 were taken.

Credit card owners will cancel stolen cards quickly, Lee said. But thieves are often quicker, making purchases before the card is invalid, he said.

If the thief is apprehended, identity-theft charges can be added to other charges, Lee said.

daler@durangoherald.com



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