Monday, November 12, 2012
It's gotten a lot trickier to recover stolen items in recent years
Back in the day, if someone broke into your house, there was a chance you'd get some of your stuff back. "Things used to be pawned locally," Safety Director Charles Goss said. "We could run down to Cleveland and look for stolen items." Now? Good luck. While true pawn shops are still pretty rare, other businesses have entered the jewelry-buying arena, giving criminals that many more places to sell their goods. Jewelry is often targeted by burglars because it's both easy to carry and valuable. "Now, jewelry stores buy gold and used items," Detective Lt. John Janowski said. "And there are so many places paying cash for gold. It's become hard to track anything down." Looking High and Low That doesn't mean Strongsville police have given up …
Tuesday, August 21, 2012
The following information was provided by the Strongsville police department
A Squirrel Hollow resident came home about 1:30 a.m. Saturday to find doors open and valuables missing from the house. A report said the resident's 92-year-old mother was in the house sleeping at the time. There were no signs of forced entry. Police said the resident had left the sliding glass door closed, but unlocked. It was found standing open. Money and jewelry were missing from the house. The elderly woman slept through the incident and did not hear anything unusual, police said.
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
The following information was provided by the Strongsville police department
A White Bark Drive woman arrived home about 3:30 p.m. July 20 to an unpleasant surprise -- a man in her bedroom. But some fast police work led to the apprehension of two teenaged suspects. A report said that when the woman walked in, the intruder -- a teen with a shaved head and wearing tan shorts -- fled outside and got in the passenger side of a maroon four-door car that was waiting nearby. She was able to give a description of the car to police, and an officer who happened to be at the scene of a crash at Pearl and Drake roads saw a car matching the description go by. He stopped the vehicle, occupied by two teens, 18 and 19, and "their stories didn't make a lot of sense," Detective Lt. John Janowski said. The victim subsequently …
Monday, July 9, 2012
The following information was provided by the Strongsville police department
A family on Braemar Way Oval woke up July 5 to find someone had been in their house overnight -- and left with their pizza and chips. A resident told police she got up about 7 a.m. and found her Domino's pizza and a bag of Tostitos missing from the kitchen. A report said the intruder apparently got in by pushing open a window, and got out through a door, which had been locked but was found unlocked in the morning. The family also discovered a box fan, household cleaners and a first-aid kit were missing. A laptop computer and other valuables were left untouched. Police are investigating.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
It may not be something you want to imagine
If you think drug addiction doesn't impact your suburban life much, think again. Police say when someone breaks into your house, it typically isn't the kid down the street looking for a thrill -- it's a drug addict desperate to fuel his habit. "I would say a very large percentage of burglaries are done for drugs," Police Chief Charles Goss said. Goss called burglary "a crime of desperation." "Residential burglary really is a desperate act because of the risk involved," he said. "If you're going to be a criminal for profit, there are a lot more safe endeavors than residential burglary." He put home break-ins in the same category as robbery because of the burglar's risk of being hurt or apprehended. In even bolder cases, addicts will enter …
Monday, March 12, 2012
Police Department's annual report shows most crime stayed steady in 2011
The number of thefts in Strongsville rose sharply last year, with burglaries also showing a small increase. Shoplifting calls jumped from 440 in 2010 to 512 last year, and thefts from vehicles rose from 152 to 208. There were 107 burglaries in Strongsville last year, compared with 96 in 2010. "We've experienced more residential burglaries, as did a number of cities in the area," Police Chief Charles Goss said. But Goss called the rise "an uptick" compared to a decade or two ago when police were handling more than 200 burglaries a year. The chief said the poor economy could be spurring more people to shoplift, but said the higher number could also be attributed to more merchants being willing to prosecute shoplifters. The police …
Monday, October 17, 2011
The following information was provided by the Strongsville police department
A Glendale Avenue family reported hearing someone trying to open their front door about 10:15 p.m. Oct. 14. They looked outside but did not see any people or cars. Police searched the area, but could not find anyone, either. It is not known if the incident is related to several other cases last weekend in which someone tried tobreak into houses while the residents were home. Police say it is unusual for a burglar to try to enter an occupied home and usually try to make sure a house is empty before they break in. Cable's Out An Acacia Drive resident reported Oct. 14 that someone cut the cable TV line to his house. A report said the line was cut at the junction box. There have been other instances of mischief at the house in recent weeks, as…
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Detective says breaking into occupied homes is 'out of the ordinary'
Police have received no more reports of someonetrying to break into houses while residents are home over the last few days. "They've stopped since those reports over the weekend," Detective Lt. John Janowski said. The incidents, in which residents were in the house when they heard someone trying to break in, are "out of the ordinary," Janowski said. "They (burglars) don't usually go where people are," he said. "Usually, they'll knock on the door to make sure no one is home." On Saturday night, residents on Idlewood Trail and Blodgett Creek heard an intruder at their windows. On Idlewood, a resident heard a noise about 10 p.m. and found a screen removed. On Blodgett, a woman heard a popping sound about three hours later and found a shrub …
James Norris
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