Darien Crime On Decline: Police

DARIEN, IL — Darien Police Chief Greg Thomas wants to make a few things clear: Darien is safe. Crime is on the decline. And residents can do a few things to become safer.

On Thursday, the chief's report to residents was posted in the Darien Connect online newsletter. The city also plans to send the document to residents through the mail.

In 2019, Darien experienced one of the lowest reported crime totals in years, Thomas said.

The village received 216 reports of major crimes last year, which is half of what was reported five or 10 years ago, Thomas said.

"While crime is down, we have recently seen an upswing in residential burglaries, which primarily occur during the day when most residents are not at home," the chief said.

One type is "ruse" burglaries, where suspects represent themselves as utility workers or contractors claiming that there is an issue in the area — water, electricity and gas being common ones — or that the victim's home is in need of repairs, Thomas said. The suspect will keep the victim occupied while another one searches for items to steal.

The more prevalent house burglary is when a suspect determines a house is empty and forces open the door.

"Typically an offender will knock on the door and if no one answers, they walk to the rear of the house and force entry through the rear door," Thomas said in the report. "Other times, they may sit in a vehicle on the street pretending to talk on the phone and wait for someone to leave and then enter the home."

Darien police asked residents to call 911 if they see suspicious people or cars and never let anyone who shows up unexpected into their homes. If a contractor or worker comes to the door without an appointment, residents are asked to call 911 so that police can check the person's photo identification and verify who they are and why they are there. Camera video and photos can be emailed to crimetips@darienil.gov.

Car burglaries plunged to 36 last year, from 111 in 2009, a drop of nearly 70 percent, the report said. Meanwhile, the chief said, car thefts are up. Ninety percent of car burglaries and thefts happen because cars are unlocked. Cars are stolen because the keys and key fobs are left inside.

The police advise residents to lock their car doors, even if they will be gone for a short time. They also say residents should not leave their keys, key fobs or valuables inside their cars. This even goes for cars parked in the garage.

Also, residents are asked to not leave their garage door openers inside their cars left outside.

The police department encourages residents to register their video security systems, so officers can contact them and request use of their video for investigations. Visit the city's video camera registry.