Lantana Police Calls

[admin]

From the Denton County Sheriff's Office:

On 11-02-2011, Deputies were dispatched to a residence in the 1700 block of Fortner Road in Bandera for a burglary report. Upon arrival, the reporting person, a Senior Construction Manager for Highland Homes in the Lantana area, reported that unknown actor(s) entered the home under construction sometime between 11-01-2011 at approximately 3:30pm and 11-02-2011 at approximately 2:30pm. The entry point into the home could not be determined, as the home is at the framing stage and there are no wall boards in place at this time. The suspect(s) cut a solid copper ground wire 1/8" in diameter on the ground floor front room area valued at approximately $250. The suspect(s) then went upstairs and cut out approximately 25 feet of air conditioner 1" and 1/2" copper Freon tubing valued at approximately $500. The actor(s) then climbed out onto the rafters and cut three strands of 12/2 white electrical wiring and three strands of colored audio wiring. Photos were taken of the crime scene and deposited in evidence photo computer.

[JKTex]

I hate to say it but they need to crack down on scrap yards in North Texas like they did in Dallas. Even bona fide contractors with legit copper from jobs have to jump through hoops to have documentation enough for them to be able to take it. But it can be worth it. Ground wire brings good money.

But there are places as far north as Gainesville that pay much less and will take anything from anyone.

[Uther]

Thieves will just drive a little further to Oklahoma eventually....

The solution isn't obvious to me. Maybe PVC-type piping, and non-copper conductive cables? The sound could be on optical cables, I suppose, but that may be more expensive.

You probably couldn't hire a watchman for the few days the house was not secure for less than the replacement cost of the copper? So they took a "business risk." Clearly the police isn't going to bust a gut on this one either. Not that I blame them, they have no leads.

They should go to the 3rd world countries and see how this problem is addressed there. Often 3rd world countries lead in effective anti-crime measures.

[admin]

From a resident's post on Lantana's HOA website:

Cars parked on the street on Weston Lane in the Sandlin subdivision were tagged with various quotes overnight on 11/26/2011. Looks like most were on the windows. Windex easily removes it.

[admin]

From the Denton County Sheriff's Office:

On 12/03/11, Deputies were dispatched to a criminal mischief report call in the 9000 block of Christopher St. in Fairlin. Upon arrival, the complainant stated that at approximately 10:30pm on 12/03/11, someone sprayed shaving cream on the sidewalk and driveway of his residence. The unknown person(s) also threw toilet paper over the trees in his front yard causing the toilet paper to hang from the limbs. The complainant also stated that he has a son attends Guyer High School and is in the tenth grade. The complainant said a similar event occurred the day before but he did not report it. No property damage had been noticed except for the cleanup effort required to remove the toilet paper and wash off the cement.

On 12.03.2011, Deputies were dispatched to a residence in the 1300 block of Burnett Drive in Heritage, in reference to burglary report. Upon arrival, the complainant reported his vehicle had been entered sometime the night before by an unknown person(s). The complainant reported his vehicle was parked on the driveway last night and was unlocked. The complainant reported nothing was taken from the vehicle but items had been moved around inside his vehicle.

On 12.03.2011, Deputies were dispatched to another residence in the 1300 block of Burnett Drive in Heritage, in reference to burglary report. The complainant reported that his two vehicles had been entered sometime last night by an unknown person(s). The complainant reported both his vehicles were parked on the driveway last night and were unlocked. Nothing was missing from the vehicles but items had been removed from the vehicle and found on the ground outside the vehicles.

[JKTex]

...parked on the driveway last night and was unlocked

Anyone surprised? Same thing every, or near every time.

I don't think I'd even admit that publicly, thus not bother calling the law. Will people ever learn? <insert face palm>

Getting TP'd is annoying, and I pity the day I catch someone, but call the law for it? It's happened once to me and since I didn't catch them, I just cleaned it up. I didn't even make my daughter help; it was that easy. How many decades has this been going on?

I look forward to this thread getting updated. It usually gives me a chuckle.

[falcon999]

lock your doors, you don't live on a farm.

and I have camera's outside recording 24/7, my across the street neighbor got teepee'd I can see 6 or 7 people but i can't make out any faces because they are so far away, but i could clearly see at my house.

[admin]

From the Denton County Sheriff's Office:

12/10/11 - Complainant’s daughter and friend were at the Larkspur Park on Shepherd Street and two black females thought complainant’s daughter called them a “bitch”. They approached complainant’s 13-year-old daughter and started cussing them and trying to instigate something. Daughter said that the two actors were adult females. On arrival deputies spoke with the complainant and the juveniles. The actor(s) in question could not be located but based on the descriptions; it sounded as though they might be part of the solicitors that have been working Lantana. The complainant was advised to call back if the issue occurred again. No further action taken.

[admin]

From the Denton County Sheriff's Office:

On December 12, 2011, Deputies were dispatched to a burglary of a vehicle report, by phone. Contact
was made with the complainant, who resides in the 8300 block of Fullerton Street in Navarro.
The complainant stated on December 9, 2011, at approximately 4:15pm, he returned home and left his work laptop
behind the driver side front seat. The complainant stated on December 12, 2011, at approximately 6:30 am., he noticed
the laptop was missing. There was no sign of forced entry into his vehicle and he may have left the vehicle unlocked.
The laptop is a Hewlett Packard model with unknown serial number at this time.

On December 12, 2011, Deputies were dispatched to a Burglary of a Motor Vehicle report call, by phone from
the 8800 block of Kameryn Ln. in Wisteria. The complainant reported that sometime last night between the
hours of 9pm. and 12noon today, his pickup was burglarized. The complainant reported that his 12 Ga.
semi-auto shotgun and black plastic carrying case were stolen from behind the seat. Also taken from the
console was a $25.00 gift card that the complainant had recently purchased at "Lowes ". The complainant’s
vehicle was parked in the driveway of his residence.

[Uther]

I have an idea. To save all those "deputy dispatches" to investigate basically unsolvable crimes of thefts from parked vehicles reported two or three days later, why don't Lantana establish drop-off zones at the entrances where Lantana residents can simply drop off all stuff they don't want to carry into the house or lock in the car. Burglars can then look though it there and decide what to steal. People who lost stuff can then at their convenience drop by a police station to file a complaint, or maybe they can fill in a form on the Internet and just pick up a copy that has been stamped and assigned an incident number by the police.

If you can't park in your garage, LOCK YOUR CAR! It ain't rocket science. I know many countries where the police won't drive out for a car content burglary, not even if the windows have been smashed. If you want an insurance report, *you* drive to the police station. I've never seen such an incredible waste of valuable police time as all these dumb incidents logged here of car burglaries.

I really feel for the police that probably can't make a sarcastic comment when they go to a house and hear stuff like "3 days ago," "iPod on passenger seat", "car not locked", "no idea of serial number", etc.

Why are people even calling the cops for stuff like that?

[Common Sense Al]

I have an idea. To save all those "deputy dispatches" to investigate basically unsolvable crimes of thefts from parked vehicles reported two or three days later, why don't Lantana establish drop-off zones at the entrances where Lantana residents can simply drop off all stuff they don't want to carry into the house or lock in the car. Burglars can then look though it there and decide what to steal. People who lost stuff can then at their convenience drop by a police station to file a complaint, or maybe they can fill in a form on the Internet and just pick up a copy that has been stamped and assigned an incident number by the police.

That's a good idea... they could put the "drop-off zones" on camera surveillance, then pull up the surveillance images when they go to the police station.

[JKTex]

I have an idea. To save all those "deputy dispatches" to investigate basically unsolvable crimes of thefts from parked vehicles reported two or three days later, why don't Lantana establish drop-off zones at the entrances where Lantana residents can simply drop off all stuff they don't want to carry into the house or lock in the car. Burglars can then look though it there and decide what to steal. People who lost stuff can then at their convenience drop by a police station to file a complaint, or maybe they can fill in a form on the Internet and just pick up a copy that has been stamped and assigned an incident number by the police.

If you can't park in your garage, LOCK YOUR CAR! It ain't rocket science. I know many countries where the police won't drive out for a car content burglary, not even if the windows have been smashed. If you want an insurance report, *you* drive to the police station. I've never seen such an incredible waste of valuable police time as all these dumb incidents logged here of car burglaries.

I really feel for the police that probably can't make a sarcastic comment when they go to a house and hear stuff like "3 days ago," "iPod on passenger seat", "car not locked", "no idea of serial number", etc.

Why are people even calling the cops for stuff like that?

Especially when you have a firearm left in the car. That's just ignorant to to do that anywhere around here.

[skiing1974]

pure idiocity.

[Uther]

pure idiocity.

I hope that was deliberate. It is delightful nonetheless.

[admin]

From Lantana Crime Watch:

Bandera residents near the corner of Bayberry and Fire Wheel have recently
been vandalized. This has included their mailboxes being hit with raw eggs,
their trees & shrubs being "toilet papered," and forks being stuck in their
front lawn. They've also received a note with "Merry Christmas... The
Suckers" written on it and have had this phrase shouted to them. These
incidents have occurred after dark on Sat, 10/22; Sat, 12/10, and Sat,
12/17.

These incidents may seem minor, but nobody appreciates them, especially the
egg throwing. The Sheriff's Dept classifies such acts as Criminal Mischief.

This past Saturday night around 7:45 pm, one girl was observed unrolling a
roll of toilet paper as she was walking with a group of individuals whom
appeared to be "tweens," i.e. almost teenagers, south on Bayberry Ave near
its intersection with Fire Wheel Way. She had blonde hair down below her
shoulders in a pony tail and was wearing dark shorts, a lighter colored
hooded jacket or sweatshirt, and lightweight boots with tassels.

The Sheriff's Dept encourages all of us to contact them directly by calling
911 with any concerns. It's hoped that this issue can be dealt with without
anyone being on record with the Sheriff. If any of the above information
"rings a bell" with you, please check with those who may be involved. If
anyone informs me that the issue has been addressed, I'll be happy to let
others in Bandera know.

Thank you.

Tom McCullough
Bandera Crime Watch Coordinator