RCMP offer tips to prevent property theft

Manitoba RCMP are encouraging the public to do what they can to prevent property theft. 

Media Relations Officer Tara Seel says property theft is a crime that impacts a lot of people every year. 

"People are very affected by property crime," she says. "It feels like a very personal crime to have your space invaded by someone who's taking your belongings, right? So, I can certainly appreciate how people want to look to better protect their properties."

Seel notes there are a lot of tips to help prevent the loss of your property.

1. "Be visible. Make sure that there's lighting. If you're in a farmyard, that your yard has lighting. That there are clear paths of vision, so you know that your house is visible from the street and anybody who's passing by is able to clearly see. So, there's no natural coverage for anybody attempting to break in."
2. "Social media activity. It's probably not the best idea to post on social media when you're going away. What dates you'll be going for when you'll be back, that kind of thing. So, we want to make sure that we're not giving a road map to anybody who might be interested in looking at our property while we're away. "
3. "Install motion detector lights on all sides of your house, if you can. Install an alarm system and if you're on a farm property, a yard alarm system would be great."
4. "Get to know your neighbours. Let them know when you're going away. If you can get them to check your property regularly, that would be beneficial."
5. "Secure your tools. If we leave a ladder in the backyard that's basically providing someone who's intent on committing a theft to a pretty easy way to do so. So, you know, to secure any tool sheds, make sure any tools are locked away."

She adds that taking stock of what you own regularly may help RCMP return stolen items to you as well, with some preparation.

"Going around your property and your home with a video camera or your phone, to take video of these items that could be stolen," she says. "Also, record serial numbers for any big items like televisions or ATVs and those types of things, so keep track of that information, that will make it easier as well. Those are two things that you can do to help in the recovery of property if the RCMP are able to track down the perpetrators and obtain that property from them."

Seel adds that fighting crime as a community is helpful to prevent theft as well, and that if you see something suspicious, be sure to call it in to your local RCMP Detachment.

"I think it's important to highlight that, if we work together as a community, we can all help to prevent people from becoming victims of a crime. So, if you see something, say something. Report it to police," she says. "If you see any suspicious activity on their property, don't just assume that it's taken care of. Maybe do a little bit of a follow-up in a safe way, of course. Maybe text your neighbour, we just want to make sure that we're all helping each other out."