Summit County Sheriff's Lieutenant Andrew Wright believes people have some control over whether they become a victim of crime. He said some basic dos and don'ts can help keep valuables, vehicles, and homes safe.
Don't leave anything visible in cars when leave them in a parking area. Do be sure to lock them up - and don't leave keys inside or vehicles idling.
Wright said the Summit County’s crime rate is low compared to many Wasatch Front communities. However, in the last couple of years, there has been an uptick in some types of crime since the pandemic.
"People know that it's a beautiful place. People know that there's easy access on and off at the freeways to get into neighborhoods, to businesses. We have seen an increase in property crimes. And that includes theft, vehicle break-ins, and auto thefts. Unfortunately, our auto thefts did dramatically increase. We typically deal with a few a year and I think in 2020 it was over 40 vehicles were stolen."
Wright advises not starting cars to warm them up, then going back inside because criminals are looking for that type of opportunity. It's not uncommon for thieves to steal vehicles from garages.
"We do have deputies that will stop by your house at two in the morning, knock on your door if your garage doors' open. Sometimes our deputies if they can they'll just shut the garage door for them, without waking them up. But yea, typically we're seeing vehicles are left unlocked, key fobs are left in cupholders or in the ignition if it's still a typical key, and people are driving away with cars."
People shop online frequently, and some thieves follow delivery trucks around looking for packages sitting on door stoops. Wright said many people use their work address for deliveries this time of year or ask neighbors to watch for them.
Wright said internet fraud happens all the time now. Scams are more technical, and scammers are craftier at getting people to click on links.
"When it comes to email, text message, any kind of online app, social media, if you get a message that says anything to click a link, don't click on it. The safest thing to always do is to go to the actual source, go through your app, go through your regular login, don't follow that link. Because these criminals are setting up websites, they're setting up login pages that look identical to what it is that you normally would log in. Now they've captured all of your identity, your logins, sometimes your financial information."
Wright said this time of year, scammers know there are a lot of gift cards in circulation, and they pretend they're the IRS, or there is a warrant out for your arrest, or a loved one is in trouble.
"These scammers really get sophisticated in their approach and make it sound legitimate. And the thing that we say about gift cards, never make payment with a gift card to anyone even if it's Apple or Google gift card, never, ever do that."
Wright said if someone is knocking in the middle of the night, and you don't know them, don't open your door. He recommends calling the sheriff's dispatch and having a deputy check things out in case the person is having a true emergency and needs help.
He said being aware of surroundings and securing property is the best way to avoid becoming victims.
