A group of people who have moved to Rotorua are being blamed for a spike in residential burglaries.
Typically there are up to 25 burglaries from homes in Rotorua in a week but recent weeks have seen a spike.
Between June 8 and 15 there were 35 reported residential burglaries and from June 16 to June 25 there were 45.
Statistics supplied to The Daily Post showed no particular suburb targeted with burglaries across Rotorua.
Rotorua police area commander Inspector Bruce Horne said the spike was mainly the result of a "very active group of offenders".
Mr Horne said the group had recently moved to Rotorua from another part of the country.
He said police were following "very strong" lines of inquiry in respect of the recent offending.
"We have executed eight search warrants at addresses in both Rotorua and Hamilton."
Mr Horne said that as a result nine people had been arrested for a range of offences including burglary and receiving stolen property.
"Although the police investigation is progressing well, there are still avenues of inquiry being followed and police anticipate more arrests will be made."
Senior Sergeant Denton Grimes of the Rotorua police said the main items targeted in the recent burglaries were electronic goods.
"It ranges from televisions to laptops to video games," he said.
Mr Grimes said burglars could strike at any time of day and Rotorua residents needed to be vigilant.
One of the things people could do to prevent burglars from targeting their home was to make the house appear like someone was there. "When you go out you can do things like leaving lights on or leaving a radio on," he said.
"It just makes it look like someone is still at home and will put someone off breaking in."
Mr Grimes said alarms and sensor lights would also deter potential burglars.
"Anything which will make it harder for people to get in un-noticed is good," he said.
People needed to take basic precautions to protect themselves from the risk of becoming a burglary victim by ensuring they locked doors and closed windows before going out and that they reported suspicious activity immediately.
If you see anyone acting suspiciously you need to let us know straight away, he said.
"When we receive reports of burglaries or suspicious activity we deal with them urgently."
Mr Grimes said community involvement was key to catching burglars.
"If you see any person or vehicle which you think is suspicious, call us on 111."
SECURITY TIPS
- Be in contact with your neighbours
- Establish a Neighbourhood Support group
- Lock doors and windows when you leave your house
- Make it look like someone is home when there isn't
- Report suspicious behaviour to the police at the time it happens
- Don't be afraid to call 111 - it's not just for life and death matters, it's for any situation where you need the police to attend urgently
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