Welcome
to
Glenoaks Canyon
The Glendale Police Department will be hosting a Crime Prevention and Neighborhood Watch Update Meeting at Joe Bridges Clubhouse at Glenoaks Park on Monday, October 14, 2013 beginning at 6:30PM. Our Area Commander, Tim Feeley will join us and provide his insight on trends and answer questions.
You may RSVP to Officer Shine at:sshine@ci.glendale.ca.us
One of our canyon neighbors was recently the victim of fraud. She received a phone call from someone who identified himself as her grandson. He claimed that he was imprisoned in the Dominican Republic and needed money. Our neighbor was given the phone number of the American Embassy in the Dominican Republic and the person she spoke to was able to verify the story. She then called Western Union to make arrangements to wire her grandson the bail money. Western Union tried to dissuade her from sending money, saying that there had been many reports of criminal activity in the Dominican Republic. However, despite this warning and due to concern for her grandson, she went ahead and sent the money. Later, when she learned from family members that her grandson was ok, she contacted the Glendale Police Department and learned that many in Glendale are being victimized in this manner. Fortunately for our neighbor, her grandson is safe, but, unfortunately, she lost the money that she sent through Western Union. She is hoping, though, that her warning to you can prevent further occurrences.
Neighbors, be careful out there!
The Glendale PD has released their year-end Crime Trends Report. You can view the report here, or sign up to receive the report on the Glendale Police Department's website by clicking here.
Although a majority of the thefts have been in Chevy Chase Canyon, it is still important for us to be aware and vigilant as well.
For many months, we have been experiencing late night thefts from mailboxes in the Chevy Chase Canyon area. The mailboxes are at the curb and the area is more remote and, therefore was targeted regularly along with adjoining areas in La Canada and La Crescenta. This trend has widened and now Glendale PD is receiving reports of thefts of mail in boxes attached to homes as far west as Valley View. Some apartment buildings are victims as crooks make entry into the lobby and the boxes as well. What the thieves are seeking is a means to steal your identity. This information is more accessible than you think. Every credit card application and those weekly blank checks to the accounts you do have sent to you are easy to complete and with a little more digging, they can get all kinds of things shipped to them at your expense.
The USPS has an 800 number on their website to report mail theft. If, however, you witness suspicious behavior or are certain of a theft, inform the Post Office, but also report it with the Glendale Police Department (818) 548-4841 to request an officer respond to take a report, if a crime has been committed. The Glendale police have been actively stopping and searching suspicious vehicles and pedestrians and have made a recent arrest of a prolific mail thief with prior arrests for the same behavior. Patrol officers have been alerted to the trend and will continue to be vigilant.
As with all criminal behavior, it is best to report all suspicious activity and continue to remove opportunity from the thieves. Remove items from your car and lock it. Illuminate your home and make it a hard target. Don’t be so distracted by your shopping to be careless. Watch where you are walking to and from and make eye contact with all you encounter. Don’t act like a victim and it is much less likely you will be a victim!
Have safe and happy holidays!
There will be a Neighborhood Watch training and information session next Tuesday, August 21 from 6:30 to 8:00pm at the Joe Bridges Clubhouse in Glenoaks Park. Everyone is welcome to attend. Officer Sue Shine of the Glendale Police Department will be presenting information that will help make our community safer and an even nicer place to live.
On June 10-11 in the overnight hours, we had multiple vehicles broken into via smashed windows and some unlocked doors. This spree took place on Eat Glenoaks, Hollister, and Scholl. In many cases, victims reported losing the usual items: GPS, iPods, sunglasses. In others, the garage remote was taken. Please remove ALL ITEMS of value including your remotes every night and lock the doors. When possible, installing a motion light near the parking area may help. The individuals will keep coming back when they need more loot for their dope habit, so any night owls would be useful in keeping an extra eye out for any movement on the street.
The Glendale Police Department has begun putting out a regular bulletin outlining some of the crime trends going on in our city. Glendale Police Chief Ron DePampa (rdepompa@ci.glendale.ca.us) attributes the increased crime in the city to the release of "realigned" felons into the community. These felons are considered by the state to be lowrisk offenders: non-violent, non-serious, and non-high risk sex offenders. But, the reality is that these felons are also career criminals: five felony convictions already, 56% have mental health issues, 56% have substance abuse issues and re-offenders with a 70% recidivism rate. It is estimated that the state will be releasing 55,000 of these felons by the end of 2012. To read more about this problem and how it affects our city and neighborhood, read the full bulletin here:
http://www.ci.glendale.ca.us/police/pdfs/crimetrends/crimetrendscrimetrends_1qtr2012.pdf
If you would like to subscribe to the Crime Trends Bulletin, a sign up form (name and email address) can be found here:
http://www.ci.glendale.ca.us/police/crimetrends/signup.asp
Be safe and vigilant out there and report anything suspicious you see in the canyon.
There was a residential burglary on Tuesday on Mt. Carmel which occurred between the hours of 8:50am and 11:00am. The point of entry was a bedroom window accessible from the hillside. The front door was the point of exit and was left shut, but not locked. Items taken include: two large screen televisions and jewelry. All bedrooms were ransacked.
The Glendale Police Department is talking to neighbors and working leads. The previous residential burglary was late in the day on a Friday (January 27 between 5:00PM-7:00PM) at the top of the Canyon.
Things to be vigilant about:
Last week, we had thefts from several unlocked cars. Interestingly, a block captain several neighborhoods over (Glenmore and Trenton) called in at 3:30am to report a male in a hoodie carrying a backpack trying door handles….How much do you want to wager that the next place he headed was up the Canyon?
Fellow Glenoaks Residents:
We continue to have break-ins and burglaries in our canyon. Please read this important message from Glendale Police Officer Sue Shine.
Four vehicles were broken into overnight on Feb 15 in the Canyon. Here is what I have:
On Coutin Lane: vehicles were left unlocked and parked on street. Contents were rummaged through and miscellaneous items (ID, credit cards) were taken from one.
Up on East Glenoaks, another car was locked and access was made by unknown means (possible Slim Jim type tool). Items shuffled and sunglasses taken. In the same area, there was a report of entry to a home through a garage on Ashburton. Once inside, thieves took surfboards and a bike.
These do not sound like seasoned thieves. I think we are dealing with some young, possibly drug addicted youth looking for folks who are easy targets. Usually, they go back to the same well until it is dry. Please tell your neighbor who has a habit of leaving the car unlocked to lock it. Also, remind folks to remove EVERYTHING that even LOOKS valuable from the car every night. Lastly, shut your garage unless you are in it and if you are one who comes or goes in the wee hours, be watchful. Most of these crooks are on foot and operate between 0100-0500hrs. If you see anyone not otherwise occupied walking a dog or jogging, call 818-548-4841 and report the description, location, and what they are doing (walking up driveways, carrying a flashlight and looking into cars, trying door handles of cars, etc).
Be careful and stay vigilant. If we all keep an eye out for each other and report suspicious activity, eventually these criminals will get the message and move out of the canyon.
Be safe.
From Officer Sue Shine:
As you may be aware, we had a daytime residential burglary on November 30. A neighbor reported seeing a tan sedan with two Males in their 20's, possibly Middle Eastern leaving the victim's home around 3:00pm. The items taken were electronics (flat screen TV, iPads, etc).
On Friday, December 2, two reports came in. The first was reported early in the morning and the second was similar to the described one above. In this case, the victim returned home at 11:20am and found their home ransacked.
The locations: 2400 block of Sleepy Hollow (reported upon discovery at 5:00am)
2500 block of Gardner Place (reported shortly after the occurrence at 11:20am)
I will get all relevant details in the morning and examine our strategies to stop these crooks. The time frame to be extra vigilant is Monday-Friday during working hours. Burglars do not usually strike on weekends because we are all home. Those of you who are at home during the weekday are encouraged to take walks and rake all those leaves up so the crooks see you and will keep going.
I assure you we will be up there in marked and unmarked vehicles and I will provide updates as I receive them.
As always, if you see a car driving slowly, perhaps more than one time, or any activity at a neighbors home that is unusual, CALL 911. Do not wait to call.
