New Berlin Police News

New Berlin PD's Mid-Summer Crime Update

Posted by Mike Glider on July 17, 2012

                                                                  New Berlin Police Department

2012 Mid-Summer Crime Report

      Now that summer is halfway over, Officer Dan Hanlon and I have looked at the property crime trends in New Berlin from May 1^st until July 15^th, looking at which crimes are trending up, which ones are trending down, and where the “hot spots” are in New Berlin this summer.

     First of all, our biggest summer crime, thefts from vehicles, is down significantly. We are hoping that the biggest reason is that people are finally getting the message to lock their car doors or even move their cars in the garage, if possible. If that’s not an option, you should remove all valuables from the car or at least hide them from view by placing them under the seat or in the glove compartment. We have been finding that about ninety percent of our theft from vehicle reports are from UNLOCKED vehicles. Many people counter with “I don’t want my window $200 window broken by some thief to steal five bucks in change, so I keep my car doors unlocked.” The fact is the only time we are seeing vehicles forcibly entered is when there is something of high value visible from outside the car. Purses, wallets, GPS units and laptops are all items that may be worth breaking glass to get at. It only takes a second to do it, but most thieves do not want to call attention to themselves by making noise.

     Scrap metal theft is another property crime that won’t go away, as long as the price of scrap remains high. There are a larger number of individuals and small groups who make a living driving around taking anything they see made out of metal that’s not tied down. The two industrial parks, both north and south of Cleveland Avenue are usually the areas hardest hit by these criminals, but some have ventured into residential areas, looking for ladders and other household items in the yard that are made of metal.

     So far the “hot spots” for residential property crime this year has been the northeast part of New Berlin. This area would be bounded by National Avenue on the south (including the Euclid Avenue area, which is just south of National), Sunnyslope Road on the west, Greenfield Avenue on the north, and 124^th Street on the east. There have been more thefts from vehicles and vandalism reports in this area than in other areas of the city. That doesn’t mean the rest of the city should get complacent. Last year, the Regal Manors East subdivision was hit hard during the month of August by thieves entering vehicles and Greenridge subdivision is also a perennial target for thieves, who worked that area this past March.

     Please keep up the good work by following these preventative steps outlined above and by calling the police department when you see ANYTHING suspicious, as soon as you seat it happen. Do not wait until the next morning!  Get license plate numbers of suspicious vehicles whenever possible. Lastly, remember not to take any police action on your own. Call the New Berlin Police Department at (262) 782-6640 or 911 in case of an emergency. 

Have a safe summer!

Captain Mike Glider     Officer Dan Hanlon      Officer Scott Hippler