Wellington saw more than 60 car burglaries in January, including 29 in the first week alone.
Crime is the last thing on visitor Donna Quinlan’s mind when she visits Wellington.
“My daughter lives here, and it’s pretty safe,” Quinlan said.
However, last month kept law enforcement busy in the village of 61,000 people, as car burglaries hit Wellington hard.
“This time of year being season and all, we just have more residents, more visitors, and so that just leads to more opportunity,” says Asst. Village Manager Jim Barnes.
The numbers are surprising.
Wellington saw more than 60 car burglaries in January, including 29 in the first week alone. Compare that number to 29 last September and October combined.
“More than half of the burglaries are from unsecured vehicles,” Barnes said.
Law enforcement are going through neighborhoods with a warning: Don’t let a false sense of security compromise your safety -- lock it up.
“It’s my first thing to do, to lock the doors. It’s just what I do,” Quinlan said.
She’s passing the message along to friends and family.
“My daughter, she sometimes has a habit of keeping her car doors unlocked, so I’m going to tell her, ‘You make sure to keep your car doors locked,’” Quinlan said.
