Police Warn to be Vigilant of Crimes of Opportunity

Merrimack Police would like to take this opportunity to ask all residents and business owners to remain vigliant during this holiday season and report any suspicious activity to police.

For the second time within a two week time frame, a snow plow has been taken from a local area business. These incidents are not unique to Merrimack as many reports are also being taken by other jurisdictions. With the coming winter season, perpetrators are taking advantage of crimes of opportunity.

Here are some of the crimes police are warning residents to be extra vigilant about:

• Plows are easily stolen by trucks already equipped with plow mounts, and plow owners should take steps to secure their plows when stored and not in use. They should also mark their property with unique identifying marks that can not be removed as easily as decals displaying their serial numbers. Other popular seasonal thefts include equipment such as snowblowers and generators, and the same precautions should be exercised.
• This is the time of year when there is also an uptick in mail and package delivery thefts, along with thefts from motor vehicles. Please be alert for strange people or vehicles following delivery vehicles, going through mailboxes or retrieving packages from your neighbors home. Valuables should not be left in vehicles, and if there is no other option, steps should be taken to secure the vehicle and keep the items out of sight.
• Internet crime are always a concern. You should never provide your personal information to someone that you don't know, didn't solicit on your own or that you are familiar with as a reputable business. Job offers, lottery winnings, offers to pay higher than your asking price for merchandise you are selling online, requesting you send a small portion of money back in return are common fraud practices. Always ask questions, ask for contact and return call information that can be verified will often turn away these scammers. Dating and relationship sites are also utilized to take advantage of people, never send funds to someone you don't know requesting money to travel or assist them in a predicament of some sort. Another known scam is receiving a call from alleged law enforcement personnel, looking for bail money for a loved one that is alleged to have been arrested in another state or even another country. Again, you should request contact information and if you are unable to directly contact the allegedly jailed loved one, contact your local authorities to further investigate. If a loved one is in actual police custody, that can be confirmed with any legitimate agency.
• Businesses should be alert for counterfeit currency and flim flam artists, that take advantage of busy clerks during the holiday season passing these counterfeit bills and confusing clerks asking to exchange smaller or larger bills, ending up providing more change than money that was paid to make the original purchase.

Police are on the alert taking steps to combat these situations, however, we are a partner to the community, and count on our partners in the community to help us apprehend these perpetrators that would seek to take advantage of our citizens. Many crimes are solved by alert citizens that provide descriptions of suspects, vehicles and registration numbers that appreciably assist us in our endeavors.

Merrimack Police can be reached at (603) 424-3774 and anonymous tips can be submitted online and by phone. Merrimack Crimeline can be phoned anonymously at (603) 424-2222, or web tips can be submitted online through Merrimack Police and Crimeline websites. It is important to know, that for crimes in progress or to report suspicious activity you should either call the main police number, or 911 in the case of an emergency, and that the Crimeline phone number and Web tip application are for reporting past tense crimes or information on potential future crimes.