YOUNGSTOWN Don't let car be a burglar magnet

When a thief sees something he wants, chances are he'll break in to get it.
By JOHN SKENDALL
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Think twice before leaving your car or truck. Even with the doors locked, your CDs and cell phones are not safe from thieves.
And if you leave your wallet or purse behind, your money, credit cards and even your identity may be subject to theft.
Police say it can happen in as little as 10 seconds, at night or in broad daylight, at work or in your own driveway.
All thieves have to do is peek into the window, see something they believe is more important to them than you, and smash a side window.
Valuable personal items are stolen every day in the Youngstown area.
Cellular phones and car stereos and a book of 50 compact discs are an expensive loss. ID cards and credit cards are a pain to replace. Losing your Social Security card can allow someone to get a birth certificate, credit cards and rack up a criminal record, all in your name.
How can you protect items that are valuable and necessary short of driving an armored car to and from work?
Hide your stuff
"Don't leave things in the open," said Niles police Capt. Charles Wilson. "You're inviting someone to break into your car."
Clear and simple advice. But whatever happened to locking car doors to prevent intruders?
Clearly the day has passed when remembering to lock up can leave a driver worry-free.
"A lock only keeps a good person honest," Wilson said. "When people want to break in, they will."
Wilson said thieves will use a rock, a metal bar or their fist to shatter a side window. He said even wrapped Christmas packages have been taken from vehicles.
To take items out of plain view, just hide them under a seat, tuck them into the glove compartment or lock them in the trunk.
"It takes a second to do that," said Salem police Lt. Don Beeson. But people often neglect to do this. "It's a simple case of it takes too much effort" -- like the excuse for not wearing seat belts, he said.
You can also avoid leaving items in your car in the first place. Tote your purse or wallet with you when you go to the gym. Never leave something so valuable as a laptop computer for thieves to find.
If you are a widget salesman, don't leave widgets in the car overnight.
Beeson said car alarms can help, even those with a simple sound alarm. He recommends parking under lights at night.
Still think you will take your chances on hiding your goods or even locking your car doors? Consider the bleak truth that you will never see the stolen item again.
A low percentage of possessions are ever returned, police say.
Beeson said the only real chance of rescuing stolen possessions is to catch the thief in the act, and this does not happen often.
Police say it is particularly important to keep your Social Security number, driver's license, credit cards and PINs with you at all times, and never leave them in a vehicle.
Identity theft is a growing problem, officer Jim Schmidt of the Canfield city police said.
Report theft immediately
Schmidt noted you should keep a list of important numbers at home and report the theft immediately if an identification or account number is taken. Don't delay in filing with the police and notifying credit card companies and credit bureaus.
"Once you have a Social Security card assigned to you, that number cannot be changed," Schmidt warns.
If a warrant is issued for a criminal's arrest and they have used your identification numbers to "steal" your identity, the police will not know the difference between you and the criminal, Schmidt said. This is because police use Social Security numbers to identify suspects. If the police are not aware your number has been stolen, they won't suspect identity theft.
That is a worst-case scenario, but Schmidt said he has seen cases of big screen televisions and other expensive items purchased with stolen credit cards.
The question remains: What causes people to break in to cars, risking arrest and, if choosing to punch through a glass pane, severe injury?
"A lot of our crime is correlated with drug abuse and drug addiction," Wilson said.
Drug users are often out of work or do not have enough money to feed their addiction, Wilson said.