Mapping it Out: July Vehicle Break-ins, Damage

Between July 1 and 31, a total of 53 cases of burglary and/or damage to vehicles were reported to . A total of 35 of those instances were exclusively damage while the remaining 18 included thefts, and sometimes damage.

The latter statistic is inflated because of an evening of vandalism July 7 in that spanned four streets—167th Place, Grissom Drive, and 82nd and 80th avenues—and left 27 vehicles heavily damaged. Those collective incidents are represented on the map with the exclamation point icon. In a particularly odd break-in dated July 16, a Metra conductor had his uniform and work equipment stolen.

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Whether burglars strike vehicles in residents' driveways or those parked outside local shopping malls and in workout center lots, they are most often looking for a quick smash-n-grab theft, police officers said.

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Fitness center parking lots are often targeted because thieves know that when people work out, they don't take their valuables with them,  Cmndr. Steve Vaccaro has said.

The best defense against burglary to your vehicle is simple: Lock your doors.

Here are a few other pointers from law enforcement officials:

1. When away from home, park in well-lit, busy areas of parking lots.
2. Take all valuables out of your car. Put packages and other items in the trunk. Don't leave change, CDs, cell phones and other items in plain view to tempt would-be thieves.
3. If you park your car in your driveway when at home, don't leave a garage door opener or house keys in the car and don't forget to lock the doors.
4. Be alert for suspicious activity in parking lots and in your neighborhood and call the police department if you observe anything out of the ordinary.
5. Call 911 to report any suspicious or unusual activity. Be prepared to provide vehicle information like the color, make, model, license plate and suspect descriptions including gender, race, and clothing.

The following is a list of vehicle break-ins reported in  between July 1 and July 31. They coincide with the accompanying map, which plots the crime for you.

MONDAY, JULY 30

Sometime between 10 p.m. July 29 and 8:30 a.m. July 30, someone broke the rear window of a vehicle that was parked in the 19500 block of Heritage Drive.

FRIDAY, JULY 27

• Sunglasses, $20 in coins, a $400 radio, zip-up CD case and about 100 CDs and hard hat were stolen from a vehicle that was parked between 10 p.m. July 26 and 5 a.m. July 27 in the 6600 block of West 179th Street. 

• Tools were missing from a lock box that was in a vehicle parked between 6 p.m. July 27 and 5 a.m. July 28 in the 7800 block of 183rd Street. The vehicle was left unlocked all weekend, police said. 

THURSDAY, JULY 26

Someone stole change from a vehicle that was parked in the 17400 block of South 66th Avenue between 9:30 a.m. July 25 and 9:30 a.m. July 26. The windows of the vehicle were rolled down about an inch and the owner said she believed the burglar entered the car that way.

TUESDAY, JULY 24 

• Sometime between 3 p.m. July 23 and 10:30 a.m. July 24, someone stole a GPS, knife and flashlight from a vehicle parked in the 17200 block of South Ridgeland Avenue.

• Scratches were found on the hood and driver's side of a vehicle parked in a garage in the 6800 block of 179th Place. Someone likely damaged the vehicle between midnight July 22 and 5 a.m. July 24.

SUNDAY, JULY 22 

A woman living in the 17700 block of South 67th Avenue called the cops after she found all the windows of her 2004 Pontiac spray-painted lime green. The sides of the vehicle were also covered in the paint, according to the report. When police asked the 29-year-old victim if she had problems with anyone, she told them she was organizing a craft fair at her church and the show had to be rescheduled. Some of the people who bought tables were angry, she told police. The incident likely occurred between 9 p.m. July 21 and 9 a.m. July 22. 

FRIDAY, JULY 20 

A woman called police after realizing that thousands of dollars in photography equipment were missing from her unlocked car. The car was parked in the 6400 block of 174th Place. Among the stolen items were several camera lenses, a GPS unit, a black Canon Rebel digital camera, a small blue Panasonic digital camera, battery packs and chargers, memory cards and a camera case. They were stolen overnight.  

THURSDAY, JULY 19

A Garmin GPS was reported stolen from a 2010 Honda CRV that was parked between 6:30 p.m. July 18 and 6:30 a.m. July 19 in the 8000 block of Deerpath.  

WEDNESDAY, JULY 18

A thief, or thieves, removed a radar detector from a vehicle that was parked between 8 p.m. July 17 and 5 a.m. July 18 in froth of a residence in the 16800 block of Beverly Avenue. 

MONDAY, JULY 16

• A Bible, Coach purse, several credit cards, several gift cards, a Social Security card and $100 cash were taken from a vehicle parked outside Women's Workout World, 16015 S. Harlem Ave., between 4:30 p.m. and 6:20 p.m. Police said several valuable items, including a purse and a GPS, remained in the vehicle. 

• A Metra conductor called police around 3:20 a.m., when he noticed that someone had stolen his Metra freight bag from his vehicle, which was parked in the 7800 block of 166th Place. A camouflage backpack was also taken. Inside the bags were black work boots, a Metra dress conductor uniform, a Kenwood portable radio with an attached microphone, a Motorola portable radio with an attached microphone, seven books of boarding passes valued at $350 each, a kevlar wallet, a driver's license, military identification, several credit cards and a GPS unit. The items had a combined value of around $6,520, according to the report. Police were able to pull some latent finger prints off the car, they said, and are investigating the theft. The 23-year-old victim said he believed it occurred between midnight and 1:30 a.m. 

• Police said someone punctured the two rear tires on a 2005 Chevrolet that was parked between 10 p.m. July 15 and 7 a.m. July 16 in the 7400 block of West Dorothy Lane.

• A wallet was stolen from an unlocked 2005 Dodge Caravan that was parked between 9:30 p.m. July 15 and 10 p.m. July 16 in the 16800 block of South Maple Lane. 

SUNDAY, JULY 15

A man living in the 8100 block of Brookside Glen Drive reported that between 12:30 a.m. and 9 a.m., someone shattered the the back window of his 1996 Nissan. The man said he had an ongoing conflict with another person and that his property had been damaged before. 

SATURDAY, JULY 14 

• Police said someone dented the passenger side of a Dodge Charger that was parked in the lot at McCarthy Recreation Center, 16801 80th Ave. The incident likely occurred between 7 a.m. and 8:20 a.m., according to the police report. 

• Someone shattered the back window of a 2000 Honda which was parked between 11 p.m. July 14 and 5:30 a.m. July 15 in the 8400 block of West 167th Street. Police said a golf bag and clubs were missing. 

THURSDAY, JULY 12 

A man called police to report that between 11:30 p.m. July 11 and 7 a.m. July 12, someone shattered the rear, driver's side window to his 2000 Chevrolet Malibu, which was parked in the street in the 18000 block of 66th Avenue.

FRIDAY, JULY 6

• A radio, speakers and a red shifter was stolen from a vehicle that was parked in the 8500 block of West Sheer Drive. A witness said he believed he saw two teenagers remove the items from the vehicle around 5:15 a.m. 

• A burglar reached his arm inside a cracked window of a 2011 Kia between 8 a.m. and 3:45 p.m. that was parked outside Women's Workout World, 16015 Harlem Ave. A camera, Garmin GPS, bank card and UPS package were taken. 

• Someone shattered a window of a vehicle that was parked in the lot at White Water Canyon, 8105 171st St., and only removed $7 in change from a wallet that was in the car. The owner said her purse was inside the vehicle but wasn't taken. 

• Police said someone stole an iPhone and a $24 Sonic gift card from a vehicle that was parked between 7:30 p.m. July 5 and 8:30 a.m. July 6 in the 8600 block of Scheer Drive. 

THURSDAY, JULY 5

Someone stole the center caps from a black Escalade that was parked around 5:40 p.m. outside PetSmart in Brookside Marketplace, 7500 W. 191st St. 

MONDAY, JULY 2

A GPS unit and purse were taken from a vehicle parked in the 8000 block of West 160th Street. The vehicle was parked in the driveway and left unlocked between 8:30 p.m. July 1 and 8 a.m. July 2. 

SUNDAY, JULY 1

Someone threw a landscaping brick through the window of a 2001 Pontiac Grand Prix that was parked between 8 p.m. June 30 to 7:30 a.m. July 1 in the 8600 block of Scheer Drive.

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