Lemont Police Remind Residents To Lock Cars… Again

LEMONT, IL — Recent thefts from unlocked cars in Lemont prompted police to send out yet another warning to residents: lock your cars. Police use the term "lock it or lose it."

Their advice is simple: lock your car, close the garage door and don't leave keys in an unattended car.

Juveniles travel the highways and often target communities close to interchanges, police said in a release.

The most recent incidents of theft happened in the Covington Knolls and Eaglecrest subdivisions, police say. They'll be increasing police presence in those neighborhoods, but that's no guarantee that they won't keep being targeted.

"As those areas become target-hardened due to residents diligently locking their vehicles, the thieves are moving inward to subdivisions where unlocked vehicles are more prevalent," police say.

Time periods leading up to the holidays see more such thefts, police say.

Police say the "theft crews" use stolen cars to travel from one location to another, committing several crimes in several suburbs in one night. They generally steal what is readily available in a car, but if the keys are left in it, they might steal the car itself.

If an unlocked car in a driveway has a garage door opener inside, they'll often steal cars or valuables from the garage.