- September 11, 2024
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The Port Orange Police Department is continuing to urge residents to keep their vehicles locked and remove items from inside to prevent break-ins and theft.
Most recently, there were 18 car burglaries in addition to two vehicles being stolen, all within a two-day period. The incidents happened on Sunday, Oct. 1 and Monday, Oct. 2, according to Community Relations and Public Information Officer Evan Doyle.
Doyle wrote in an email that the recurring theme with each incident was that the vehicle was left unlocked.
"Were the vehicles secured, it is very likely that none of them would have been broken into," Doyle wrote.
Doyle added that car break-ins are an ongoing issue throughout the city, with vehicles almost always being unlocked. He noted the most recent incidents occurred in neighborhoods near Madeline Avenue.
According to the police department, Port Orange had 420 vehicle burglaries in 2016. Around 90% of those vehicles were unlocked. Guns, wallets and garage door openers were among the items stolen from the cars, according to authorities.
"Please lock your cars and secure your valuables," Doyle wrote. "For a crime to occur, three elements must be present: ability, desire, and opportunity. If a vehicle’s doors are locked and valuables are hidden, the opportunity is greatly diminished."
On Monday, Oct. 2, Port Orange Police responded to a report of a car break-in.
The person reporting the incident told officers that at approximately 7 a.m. his wife had found her vehicle, a Silver 2014 Ford Fusion, ransacked while she had been getting ready to leave for work, according to authorities.
The incident report indicated that the woman's husband reviewed his surveillance cameras when he returned home from work around 4:30 p.m. and saw three black males going through the car and checking the door handles of other vehicles.
No damage or missing items had been reported from the vehicle. However, the car had been unlocked in the driveway, according to the incident report.
An officer reviewing the video observed two black males with gloves on leaving what appeared to be a silver Sedan. According to the officer, there was no way to identify the third suspect's gender or ethnicity as they never left the vehicle.
According to authorities, there are no known suspects at this time.
A Chevrolet Cruz reported as stolen from a Port Orange residence was involved in a hit-and-run accident in Daytona Beach, according to authorities.
The incident took place on Monday, Oct. 2, the same day it was reported as stolen. Authorities noted the vehicle was not recovered. Several hours earlier, the vehicle had also attempted to flee from a traffic stop near the intersection of Desoto Street and Oak Street in Daytona Beach.
The owner of the vehicle told authorities the Chevrolet had been parked in his driveway but on Monday morning it was gone. The owner told authorities his other vehicle, a Chevrolet pickup truck, also in the driveway, had been entered into and the keys for the Chevrolet Cruz, located in the center console, were also gone along with $120 in cash.
According to the incident report, the owner stated the truck had been locked and secured and that there were no signs of forced entry. However, the owner claimed the weather stripping to the door was damaged, though it appeared to be age related as the vehicle was 17 years old, according to the report.
The vehicle was processed for prints, with no results, according to authorities.
