Cerritos Weekly Crime Recap: March 28 - April 3

Editor's Note: The information below comes from the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Cerritos Station's weekly crime summary. 

The  received 17 Part I felony reports during this period, down from the previous 20. Robberies, commercial burglaries, and vehicle burglaries took a spike, while vehicle thefts remained the same and residential burlgaries decreased. Field deputies logged 258 calls for service, and the 2011 weekly average in calls for service remained at 256. 

ROBBERIES

Two robberies were reported during this week and both involved shoplifting incidents. On Monday, March 28 at 3:00 p.m. a loss prevention employee from a retail store in the Cerritos Towne Center was attempting to detain a shoplifter when the male suspect pushed the employee and fled through the parking lot. The second incident occurred at 1:21 p.m. on Wednesday, March 30 at another store in the Towne Center when an employee again attempted to detain two male shoplifters but they pushed him down and fled to an awaiting vehicle.

RESIDENTIAL BURGLARIES

Residential burglaries dropped from five to three during this period. Two of these crimes were “distraction burglaries," where the male burlgars gained entry to the residences while posing as City water employees and claimed that they needed to check the quality of the tap water for sand contamination. During this guise, one of the two slipped away and removed cash and jewelry from the resident's bedroom. The third burglary incident during this period was due to an open/unlocked door, allowing the thief to steal bicycles and a scooter. The new 2011 weekly average in residential burglaries is 3.5.

Sheriff's safety tip: Any employee of the City or utility serving Cerritos will wear ID that identifies them as employees. If you are not satisfied that they are who they represent themselves to be, you are encouraged to contact the City to verify their identity. Do not an individual access to your home or yard until you are sure. In these recent burlgary cases, a “tell-tale” sign was that both suspects wore IDs that had the names blacked out.

COMMERCIAL/OTHER STRUCTURE BURGLARIES

There were two attempted commercial burglaries reported during this period. Both attempts involved the same middle school where windows in the computer lab rooms were shattered, but entry was not made. The 2011 weekly average in “other structure”/commercial burglaries is now 2.7.

VEHICLE BURGLARIES

Vehicle burglaries increased to four this week. Two of the crimes occurred in high-volume commercial parking lots, and the other two happened in residential tracts. Two involved SUVs. A stereo, purses, a watch, and a backpack were taken in the break-ins. The 2011 weekly average in vehicle burglaries is 5.1.

Sheriff's safety tip: Just because you are parked in the driveway of your home does not exempt you from becoming a victim. Two residents who recently had their cars broken into can verify that ANY property left in your vehicle, no matter where it is, can be taken, unless of course your vehicle is locked in the garage!

VEHICLE THEFTS

Two vehicle were taken from residential driveways during this period. One was a Honda and the other a Toyota. The 2011 weekly average in this category is 2.2.

Sheriff's safety tip: It is very important that you use some form of an anti-theft device to retain your vehicle. Visible deterrents, such as a steering wheel locking device, are the most obvious and tell the would-be thief to look elsewhere. These are important especially of you own one of the two most stolen makes in California, which are Honda, Toyota, and high-end SUVs. A great deal of success has been demonstrated by tracking devices that can lead law enforcement directly to the location of a stolen vehicle. These systems cost a little more and require a monthly fee, but are very effective.