Sheriff Gene L. Wriggelsworth urges all Ingham County residents to keep garage doors closed during winter months.
Sheriff Gene L. Wriggelsworth urges all Ingham County residents to keep garage doors closed during winter months. See Additional Crime prevention tips:
For your home:
•Give your home the appearance of occupancy at all times.
•At night, leave on outdoor lights. Effective lighting over doorways and garages, and strategically placed floodlights (particularly those with motion detectors), add to prevention measures.
•Windows and doors should be securely locked. Inadequate locks should be replaced or supplemented.
•Shrubbery should not obscure doors and windows.
•Have an easily readable house number on your mailbox and/or house so it can be easily located by police or fire in the event of an emergency
•MAKE A LIST of your valuables and record make, model, and serial numbers. Permanently mark them or engrave them. Police OFTEN find these items at pawn shops and on drug raids, but without positive identification, they cannot usually seize the property or charge the persons in possession.
•When on vacation, arrange to have someone collect mail and newspapers, or suspend service.
For your car
•Do not leave purse, wallet, cell phones, or any valuables in plain sight
•LOCK your car at all times. Park it inside whenever possible
•Have serial numbers recorded of valuables
•Do not leave valuables in your car overnight
•Park in a well-lit area whenever possible
For your identity
•Do NOT throw credit card statements, pre-approved credit card offers, or ANYHTING with your personal information on it, into the trash. Shred or burn it.
•Keep your computer virus protection up to date
•Do NOT open e-mails from unknown persons.
•When making online purchases, make sure you are using a secure site. A secure site will contain https:// (as compared to http://)
•Password protect your wireless internet connections
•Use discretion on who you allow to use your computer
•Run a credit check throughout the year. Each of the three main Credit Bureaus will allow you one free check per year. Space them out through the year
For your person
•Avoid known high crime areas
•Travel, walk, shop, etc with other people whenever possible
•Be constantly aware of your surroundings
•Carry yourself with confidence. Criminals are looking for VICTIMS, not Adversaries
•Carry purses or wallets in a secure manner to prevent them from being easily grabbed
•Consider carrying a “drop” wallet: an extra wallet with nothing of value in it that can be surrendered to a mugger
•Do not carry or display large amounts of cash
IN GENERAL, criminals are looking for complacency. The harder you make it for them, the more likely they are to move on to someone else. Many people develop the habit of not following the most basic crime prevention steps (such as locking doors) and have the mindset that “It will never happen to me”. This is exactly the type of person criminals are seeking.
For additional contact Kathy Cole at 517-676-8206
Address/Location
Ingham County Sheriff's Office
630 N Cedar St
Mason, MI 48854
Contact
Emergency: 9-1-1
Non-emergencies: 517-676-8206
Kathy Cole
Sheriff's Office
[email protected]
517-676-8206