Call in Tips to Crimeline!

click link above for Crimeline

If you have any information about a felony crime that has been committed….. • Call Crimeline at 1-800-423-8477 • Your information will be taken in strictest confidence. Your identity will be protected and you will never have to give your name. • You will be given a code number. Your tip code number should be kept private and NOT shared with anyone. • If you have additional tip information call Crimeline back, provide your confidential tip number and update your tip 24 hours a day. • If you would like to check the status of your tip call CrimeLine Tuesday - Friday 10:00am - 4:00pm, giving your confidential tip code number. • Tips that lead to the felony arrest of suspects and/or the recovery of stolen property and drugs may be eligible for cash rewards of up to $1,000, which are paid to tipsters on an anonymous basis. • All tips eligible for a reward are paid to Tipsters using an anonymous process.

Dedicated To Our Lake Mary Jane Neighborhoods

Lake Mary Jane Crimewatch needs your input, your diligence, and your cooperation.  The more eyes we have watching out for crime, and reporting suspect activities, the safer our neighborhoods become.

Stay tuned for further developments on a dedicated website, email address, and reporting information as we forge a coalition of mutual interest based upon an effort to Crime Watch in the Lake Mary Jane area.

So, should you see anything suspicious, report it here. Submit the long and short of it.  Crime Watch is intended to heighten everyone's awareness.  Your message just may protect from another prank, robbery, or act of vandalism.  Share this info with our neighbors.  Crime prevention begins with awareness.

Comments welcome!

Crimewatch

Dear Neighbors,

I am very disturbed that this rash of crimes has now officially escalated from taking things out of unlocked cars and driveways in the middle of the night, to a break-in of a home in broad daylight!  There was also an incident last week where there may have been an attempted break-in of a home in on Smoke Rise Ct in Live Oak at night.

Today’s break-in happened between noon and 2:30 pm in the Isle of Pines on Lacebark Pine Rd by Capri.  The thieves went around back and kicked in the door.  The house is owned by a retired police officer – and his gun collection was stolen along with a computer and a lot of jewelry with very sentimental value.   

Tonight at our IOP Board meeting we had several members of the Orange County Citizen’s Patrol come speak.  They are going to help patrol our communities when possible and may park their car on one of the main streets as a deterrent.   They cannot make arrests – but they will call in any suspicious activity, take photos and get the police to respond if needed.  Please thank these volunteers if you see them in our area! 

A couple of suggestions were made at our meeting. 

1. Make a website with descriptions of what is going on and what to look out for.  If someone is interested in creating this website – please let me know so we can work together on this.
2. Make decals for our car windows so we can easily know if a car belongs in our neighborhood.

This is not required – but we could offer to anyone that wants one.  Maybe they would all say LMJ CrimeWatch?? Give me other ideas or your thoughts on this.   If anyone wants to work with me on this  – I thought this was a great idea!

Again – keep your eyes out for suspicious vehicles.  So far the sightings of suspicious vehicles include many sightings of a white truck, a red truck, a light SUV, and a silver 4 door 2005 Toyota Camry.  People are seeing them driving slowly along the streets in both in daytime and night – and sometimes they are parking in front of houses.  If you see a suspicious vehicle – get the license plate number if you can do it safely.  Remember – we know they have guns now – and we don’t want anyone hurt!

Lock you cars and your doors.  I just put up a BEWARE of Dog sign out front – this is a great deterrent too!

Thanks to all of you for your emails and info!

Suzanne Arnold

Crimewatch

Keys to Neighborhood Watch

The Orlando Police Department's mission is to keep Orlando a safe city by reducing crime and maintaining livable neighborhoods. Preventing crime in our community is a shared responsibility between the police and our residents. The Neighborhood Watch Unit (NWU) has been entrusted with the responsibility of empowering Orlando's residents to keep their neighborhoods safe. Creating safe neighborhoods and conducting crime prevention education is our #1 goal.

 The Objectives of Neighborhood Watch are:

• To prevent crime by improving security, increasing vigilance, and creating and maintaining a caring community in an effort to reduce the opportunities for crime
• To assist the police in detecting crime by promoting effective two-way communication and the prompt reporting of suspicious and criminal activity
• To reduce undue fear of crime by providing accurate information about crime risks, and by promoting a sense of security and community spirit...particularly amongst the more vulnerable members of the community
• To enhance the police/community partnership by providing effective communication through systems such as the Neighborhood Watch Block Captain Program. The Neighborhood Watch Unit communicates with Block Captains via e-mail, fax, phone or mail of local crime trends which they may then disseminate to their Neighborhood Watch members.

The ABC's of Neighborhood Watch

When a group decides to form a Neighborhood Watch, it:

• Contacts the Orlando Police Department Neighborhood Watch Unit for help in training members in home security, reporting skills and for information on local crime patterns
• Selects a Block Captain who is responsible for organizing meetings and relaying information to members
• Recruits members, updates records

What is Suspicious Activity?

• Someone screaming or shouting for help
• Someone looking into windows and parked cars
• Unusual noises
• Property being taken out of houses where no one is at home or a business is closed
• Cars, vans or trucks moving slowly without apparent destination, or without lights
• Anyone being forced into a vehicle
• A stranger sitting in a car or stopping to talk to a child
• Abandoned cars

A suspicious activity is an occurrence that is out of place and should not be happening in your neighborhood. Report these incidents to the police department. Talk about the problem with your neighbors.

Our team formula is:
         Neighborhood Watch + 9-1-1 = Safer Neighborhoods in Orlando!

Block Captains

The continuity and success of the Neighborhood Watch program hinges on the person referred to as the Block Captain. The "Block Captain" is a community member who acts as a liaison between those who work and/or live in a particular area, and the officers assigned to that area. Through the Block Captain, and through Neighborhood Watch meetings, officers pass along crime prevention tips and information to members of the community. This liaison is maintained on an informal basis within the framework of the Neighborhood Watch group.

Organizing and Maintaining

• The defined Neighborhood Watch area must have at least 40% participation
• Two training meetings: at the first meeting, you will learn the dynamics of Neighborhood Watch; the second meeting is about residential security
• Creation of a communication/telephone chain
• The Watch must be able to maintain an accurate list of members' names, addresses, and telephone numbers
• The Watch must be able to activate the communication/telephone chain and reach all members within a designated time period
• The Neighborhood Watch group is required to hold two meetings a year, which must be scheduled through your Neighborhood Watch ambassador. Participation in National Night Out will count as one of the required meetings.

A sure sign of security

How to Get Started

First, concentrate your initial effort by organizing those neighbors with whom you have occasional contact. For example, if your block is mostly single-family dwellings, invite neighbors on both sides of the street and adjacent corners. If you live in an apartment or condominium, include everyone in your building and in the adjacent buildings as space permits.

Secondly, talk to your neighbors and tell them you are starting a Neighborhood Watch and that you need their participation. Enlist the help of another willing neighbor to assist you. Introduce yourselves by going safely door-to-door. We suggest the following tips to encourage the neighbors to participate:

• Tell your neighbors about any recent crime activity in the area. Inquire as to which evenings your neighbors are available. Generally, neighborhood meetings are conducted in the evenings Monday through Thursday.
• Exchange phone numbers. Tell your neighbors that you will notify them when a meeting is scheduled.
• Take this opportunity to get acquainted on a first-name basis. This is vital to the success of your Neighborhood Watch.
• If you need a location for your meeting, ask if neighbors can offer their home to host this or a future meeting. Alternative locations, which can commonly accommodate a meeting, include local schools, places of worship, and libraries.

Lastly, call the Neighborhood Watch Unit at (407) 246-2369 to schedule an available date and time for your first meeting.