At the El Dorado Kiwanis Club meeting Wednesday, Captain Kevin Holt, with the El Dorado Police Department, updated members on the recent vehicle break-ins.
Holt said Tuesday night there were around eight additional break-ins that occurred.
“It’s unique,” he said. “We normally do not have them this late in the year.”
Holt said that vehicle break-ins are common during the first of June when school is out, “but it’s gone on longer this year.”
Areas where vehicle break-ins occurred include Virginia, Crawford, Country Club Terrace, streets off of Mount Holly, the Racquet Club area, plus others.
“It’s not really one specific area,” Holt said. “It’s pretty much just the north end of town.”
He said they are increasing their patrols in the areas that have been hit regularly.
Holt added that a lot of the vehicles that were reported were left unlocked. He referred to it as “a crime of opportunity” and suspect that juveniles are committing the break-ins.
“We don’t know that for sure,” Holt said, referring to juveniles committing the crimes. “When (juveniles) are out roaming in a group, or even singular, as they are walking down the street they’ll simply grab a door handle. If it’s opened, they’ll pilfer through it. If it’s not open, they move on down the road.”
Holt added that when porch lights are turned on at a residence, “a lot of times they won’t stop.”
He also stressed the importance of parental responsibility. “Kids are roaming the streets in the wee hours of the night,” he said. “We ask that parents become more involved with their kids.”
Holt said that he wasn’t sure how dangerous the suspects are, but there have been reports of guns stolen from vehicles.
He said the people committing these crimes are “getting more bold.”
“We just ask that anybody that sees anything to call us,” he said “Don’t try to confront them. Call us and let us deal with it.”
He also suggests that everyone make sure their cars are locked at night.
Also during the meeting, Captain Karl Nichols brought a special officer, police bomb K9 and tracker, Pearl. Pearl gave a demonstration of how she would typically find a bomb.
Nichols placed a bag of explosive powder inside of a purse before the meeting. When she sniffed everyone, she stopped and laid down by the purse, showing that she detected the powder.
Kaitlyn Rigdon can be reached at 870-862-6611 or [email protected].