Vehicle Break-ins on Rise in Fredericksburg: Police

FREDERICKSBURG, VA — Seems like all over Northern Virginia these days, following spates of vehicles being broken into, various agencies inevitably release an alert for considered citizens.

Pared to their essence, they all more or less carry the same simple message, if not an admonition:

Lock your vehicles and don't leave anything valuable inside them.

Even so, during the past week, there's been an increase in thefts from vehicles as well as vehicle tampering, according to Fredericksburg Police.

Just Thursday, officers responded to the 600 block of Cobblestone Boulevard for a report of multiple vehicles being being broken into.

So here's their alert from Fredericksburg Police:

• Keep your vehicle locked at all times. Unlocked vehicles are easy targets for criminals
• Never leave valuables, such as purses, laptop computers, portable music players or cash, in your vehicle. If you must keep important items or purchases in your vehicle while out
  shopping, for example, place them in the trunk or completely out of view.
• Do not leave book bags, gym bags or luggage in view as criminal assume they contain valuables.
• File a police report if items are stolen from your vehicle! Stolen items are often recovered and are returned to their owner. However, if stolen items are not reported to the police, there is no way for items to be returned to their owner.

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