By Jesse Serwer
³We are not certain whether it is one individual or multiple individuals, but we are working with the county [to investigate],² said Lt. Dennis Marcel of the Rockville Centre Police Department.
Four homes were burglarized between June 20 and June 23, at least two of which ‹ one at Harvard Avenue and another at Lakeview Avenue ‹ were hit during daytime hours. A third burglary, at a South Forest Avenue home, was reported to have occurred between 12:10 p.m. and 9 p.m. on June 22, and the owner of a Hendrickson Avenue home that had become vacant after a fire reported that it was burglarized sometime on June 20.
The tenant of a Merrick Road apartment reported the theft of an undetermined amount of cash that could have occurred anytime between June 9 and June 23. And on June 29, a River Road resident reportedly came home to find an unidentified woman in her home. The woman was not apprehended by police, and items were missing from the house.
Jewelry was reported taken in the Harvard Avenue, South Forest Avenue, Lakeview Avenue and River Road burglaries.
At several of the homes, entry did not appear to be forced, police said. ³The biggest thing is to get people to lock their doors and windows, because that is how some of these burglaries took place,² Marcel said. At the South Forest Avenue home, where numerous pieces of jewelry were stolen, burglars entered through a front window that was left open. ³Ninety percent of burglaries happen when doors, windows, and vehicles are left unlocked,² Marcel explained.
He said that the police department is urging residents to lock doors and windows at night ‹ especially on the first floor ‹ to roll up car windows and lock doors, and not to leave valuables in plain sight inside homes or vehicles. It is also a good idea to cut back shrubs and tree branches that may block windows and to illuminate areas around doors and windows, Marcel said. ³If you have car-or home-alarms, be sure to arm them,² he said.
Despite the recent incidents, according to Marcel, there has been no significant jump in burglaries in the past year. As of May 1, the last time statistics were tallied by the police, the number of burglaries was down by six, from a reported 26 last year.
³In general, burglaries go up in the summer,² said Rockville Centre village spokesman Jeff Kluewer. ³When people are going in and out, they leave doors and windows open, and there are crimes of opportunity. There are bad guys out there, but I don¹t think there is any crime wave going on.²
Comments about this story? RVCeditor@liherald.com or (516) 569-4000 ext. 285.
