Police patrol for porch thieves

In parts of DeKalb County, where porch thieves have targeted holiday packages, police have started knocking on doors of residents to alert them that a delivery was left unattended.

Officers are cracking down on criminals stealing holiday deliveries and adding patrols to areas where residents have fallen victim to and captured surveillance of thieves stealing presents. In the community off Boulder Gate Drive, residents have reported toys and other deliveries taken.

Officers said surveillance video captured by Ring and Nest cameras and shared on social media apps such as NextDoor have led officers to arrest some culprits.

Officers are warning residents to practice safety tips for deliveries, and utilize new options offered by mail carriers:

  • request a signature upon delivery.
  • have a neighbor pick up any unattended packages.
  • ask USPS, UPS or FedEx to ship deliveries to a customer mail center or store, or even a neighborhood store that advertises drop-offs as a courtesy service.
  • request a reroute if you realized at the last minute you cannot be home for a delivery. 
  • utilize Amazon's locker service to pick up packages at a corporate location.