By John C. O'Connell
"We're increasing enforcement during this period, especially in areas we know that may be problems," said Lt. Michael Hayes, chief of the anti-crime unit for Nassau County's 5th Precinct serving the Valley Stream area. "We're adding patrols around the areas most frequented by shoppers: Rockaway Avenue, Merrick Road, Sunrise Highway, Hempstead Turnpike, and the Green Acres Mall," he said. "We are employing extra manpower and increasing our concentration of patrols at the times and in the places they'll be most effective."
Holiday shoppers are targets for thieves, and police say they're doing what's necessary not only to stop crimes in progress but prevent them from happening in the first place.
"We have a prevention program in cooperation with the Green Acres Mall that hopefully will persuade would-be criminals to change their minds and not commit the crime at all," Lt. Hayes said. "Green Acres has a very good program itself, with very effective use of camera monitoring systems and its own security force that actively patrols the parking lots and shopping areas," he said.
Those efforts, combined with employment of Nassau Police special operations squads and mounted units are intended to make shopping safer.
Residents can take precautions for their own security, police say. "You need to be mindful of where you are at all times," Lt. Hayes cautions. "You need to be aware of where your money is and to hold onto your pocketbook in a secure fashion."
Where you park can also affect your safety. "Always park in a well-lighted area. It's a bad idea to be returning to your car with packages and going into a dimly lit or darkened area. Keep in mind," the anti-crime officer advises, "that if you feel uncomfortable about your situation at any time, your body language is probably sending you an important signal: it's telling you to get to somewhere more brightly lit or where there's more people around; a safer place."
Joseph Locoteta, president of the Valley Stream Civilian Patrol, agrees with Lt. Hayes. "People have to be careful," he told the Herald. "Three important things to keep in mind are never to leave your packages sitting in plain view in your car, always have your car keys in your hand as you approach your car so you're ready to get right in, and when you're waiting on line at the cash register to pay, don't leave your pocketbook unzipped, just hanging open. People look for this and they are just waiting for you to do it so they can reach in and help themselves," Mr. Locoteta said.
The Valley Stream Civilian Patrol is also increasing its watchfulness during the season. "We patrol Green Acres and the rest of the community all year long, but now especially we concentrate on all the parking areas and locations where crimes might happen," Mr. Locoteta said.
Valley Stream resident and holiday shopper Lucille Saitta has her own words of advice: "I put my pocketbag across myself and I don't shop alone at night."
Good advice for making sure shoppers don't get robbed of the spirit of the holidays along with their possessions.
