Whangarei's burglary hotspots revealed

Burglaries are happening in Whangarei at a rate of about 27 a week, police provisional figures show.
The records show that there have been 230 dwelling burglaries and 99 other burglaries, mainly of commercial premises, since January 1.
These are the latest figures on burglaries from Whangarei police, but they have not been audited. The official, audited figures will be released later in the year.
The unaudited figures show that the burglary hotspots have been Kamo Rd, with 14 burglaries reported since the start of the year, William Jones Drive, with 13, Raumanga Valley Rd 10, Mill Rd and Park Ave eight each and Corks Rd six.
Whangarei police tactical coordinator Senior Sergeant Rob Huys said while those streets had been the most vulnerable recently all residents should do their utmost to prevent burglaries.
Mr Huys said the hottest items on a burglar's "shopping list" were laptop computers, large-screen televisions, cellphones, digital cameras and gaming consoles.
"All are items they can sell quickly," he said.
Mr Huys said police had made inroads into the spate of burglaries with the separate arrests of two suspected serial burglars in the past two weeks.
A 16-year-old boy from the Whau Valley area was believed to have been involved in at least six burglaries in that area, and a man was arrested and charged in relation to a further 14 burglaries in the Kensington and Avenues areas.
 People should do as much as they could to protect their properties from burglars as "as soon as we catch one somebody else seems to step into the gap", Mr Huys said.
"Burglars are by their nature lazy and ...  and a lot of them see this as making easy money." 

 Mr Huys said people should ensure all windows and doors were securely locked and valuables kept out of reach, and preferably out of sight.
 "Many are opportunistic. If they see an item that they can get by just smashing a window and reaching in they will. In educational institutes particularly, which are being targeted for laptops, they can smash a window, reach in to grab something then be off without triggering an alarm." he said.
"That's just making things too easy for a burglar. It's very important for people to record the serial numbers of their goods so that it makes it easy for us to track them if we find stolen property," Or they could mark equipment with an indelible system.
Mr Huys said burglaries were directly linked to Whangarei's illicit drugs scene and often when police bust a drug dealer they would find property stolen during burglaries that had been traded for drugs.
 
He said if so-called law abiding people were not prepared to turn a blind eye when offered cheap deals there wouldn't be as big a market for the stolen goods.
 Any suspicious activity could be reported to Whangarei police on 430-4500 or on the Crimestoppers anonymous tip-off hotline 0800 555-111.