Date of Release: March 2, 2009

Reference: Thefts from Motor Vehicles

The Portsmouth Police Department wants to remind city residents to remove valuables from their vehicles and to lock their cars.  We have been experiencing a marked increase of thefts from motor vehicles, with the overwhelming majority of them involving unlocked vehicles.  Oftentimes, valuable items such as wallets, money, cameras, computers, etc., have been left in the passenger compartment of the unlocked vehicles in plain sight.

This makes anyone an easy target for this type of theft, which is very hard to prevent unless the police catch the suspect in the act.

The police department also advises residents that leaving the keys to your vehicle in your car is an open invitation to have the car stolen.  We urge you to be more diligent and help us to deter this criminal activity from taking place in Portsmouth.

As always, we thank you for your cooperation and help.

return