A 21 PERCENT hike in reported residential burglaries has prompted a stern message from Wanganui's police chief.
Area Commander Inspector Duncan MacLeod said the latest crime stats for Wanganui had revealed a 21 percent increase in reported residential burglaries and a six percent increase in reported thefts from cars from last
year.
And Mr MacLeod said he wanted people to help police and protect themselves by locking doors and windows and leaving valuables in their cars out of sight.
He said many burglaries of houses which occurred on any day, at any time and in any part of Wanganui happened simply because people had left their windows and doors unlocked.
"A lot of the burglaries are opportunistic and if the door wasn't unlocked the burglary wouldn't have occurred," he said.
"People can help themselves and help us by using greater security."
Police also asked people not to leave property such as laptops, cameras and handbags in cars where they could be seen.
Many thefts from cars occurred around the CBD area at night and fingerprints or forensics were seldom left behind, which meant many offenders were not caught.
"People see the opportunity and it only takes seconds to get into a car," he said.
Burglaries, vehicle thefts and thefts from cars accounted for a high proportion of crimes in Wanganui and it was an area the public said was important to them and had asked police to focus on.
"The biggest challenge is reducing strategic crime in relation to burglary and theft from cars and, also, I'd like to see an increasing reduction in family violence," Mr MacLeod said.
The latest stats also showed a three percent decrease in reported family violence, while reported violence and sex crimes in Wanganui had decreased from last year "across the board," he said.
Reported drug and antisocial crimes most of it cannabis-related had increased by 6.1 percent, continuing a trend from last year.
Police had apprehended more people in possession of cannabis and uncovered an increasing number of plantations and cultivations in the past year, ranging from one plant to several hundred.
The public had also reported an increasing number of disorderly behaviour crimes.
