Whenever the cops receive any complaint pertaining to theft at locked houses, their common grouse is; Why don’t they (landlords) inform us in prior? Many do not know, cops have a system where in they keep a tab on locked houses during their beats-both during morning and night hours.
DCP (Crime and traffic) P Rajendra Prasad told Deccan Herald though it has been publicised umpteen number of times to alert police, in case the occupants of a particular house are going out of station for a couple of days, the response is a big zero. Such houses will be recorded as ‘locked houses’ in the file, to facilitate the cops on patrolling- be it cobra or cheeta two-wheeler patrolling wings, during day hours and those on night rounds.
Saying that the perpetrators are also equally smart and adept at identifying the locked houses, the officer said, the house owner/s have to take some preventive steps like- keeping all the valuables they possess either in bank locker or at relative’s place.
Secondly, instead of using padlock, better they equip their house with door locks and crossbar for backdoors. In case of padlock, the thieves can easily identify the targets.
In addition to this, what gives them the perfect scent of ‘nobody at home’ is newspapers, milk packets and also in some cases letters found strewn in the compound.
Instead, it would be better if neighbours are asked to keep an eye on the house and inform police if they find any suspicious activities. Also, they should arrange friends or relatives to sleep at home to keep vigil during night hours. On an average, 20 such cases of theft at locked houses are registered by the city police alone annually, said Rajendra Prasad.
If not police, the house owners can deploy technology to safeguard their property. It could be either close circuit TV camera connected to a PC, burglar alarm available in the market or the latest technology.
If one has a cell phone of 3G version, connected to their computers at home, they can also keep note of what’s happening at home during their absence from any corner of the world.
If it’s a thief at home, they can easily tip off the police in no time.
Smart act
It happened just a few months ago. A burglar had to return empty handed as the house he managed to sneak into at Siddarthanagar here, had nothing worth to loot. It was an empty home, as the landlord had kept all the valuables in the safe locker of a bank, before flying abroad. Will you be wise in thinking like him?