LEXINGTON, Ky. — Lexington Police are reminding residents to be mindful of porch pirates this holiday season. As more people ship and receive packages, thieves are looking for an opportunity to strike.
Sgt. Guy Miller, a public information officer with the Lexington Police Department, said porch thefts are high this time of year.
“You don’t want that package out there for an extended period of time to where someone just walking by or driving by can see it because if that opportunity presents itself they may seize that opportunity,” Miller said.
Miller said once you get a delivered notification, secure the package as soon as possible.
“Either use your neighbors or your family members that may be at your house and as soon as you get that notification a package is delivered secure it off your front porch before someone else can,” Miller said.
Thieves in Lexington are also targeting Christmas decorations. A Grinch in Lexington was caught on camera taking decorations off a resident’s porch in the Masterson Station neighborhood.
“Keep a watchful eye. If you do have those Ring doorbell cameras and they’re set up to motion and it goes off, call us immediately. Let us know the description of the suspect and the direction they’re going,” Miller said.
Amazon, FedEx and other shippers also allow customers to have their package delivered to a licensed ship center. In Lexington, The MailRoom is an Amazon and FedEx counter.
“We are also an Amazon counter, so if you have something that you’re purchasing on Amazon or being sent to you from Amazon, you can choose our location as your pickup point.”
Owner of the MailRoom, Len Costanzo, says they have a similar service for FedEx customers. The store’s main specialty is packing and shipping various items from one person to another.
“A good option is to require a signature on delivery so that way you know when it gets delivered,” Costanzo said.
As for decorations, Miller said to put an identification mark or tag in case they get stolen such as your initials. He said if you have a camera or video doorbell to register it with the department CONNECT LEXINGTON site.
“That’s a very efficient way to get video to our detectives when a crime happens to help them solve the crime a little bit quicker and hopefully get your property back,” Miller said.
Police say registering your camera does not give them a live video stream of your device; it only lets them know a camera is in that location.
Lexington Police are also asking businesses to integrate their cameras. This gives LPD access to the camera’s feed if an emergency or crime happens near that location and is only monitored in the event of a reported crime.