If you see someone in a yellow and blue jacket checking out your vehicle while it’s parked in a parking lot, it’s probably a member of Citizens on Patrol conducting a Lock Out Auto Crime survey.
Port Alberni RCMP and COPS were at the Walmart parking lot last Friday surveying vehicles in order to raise awareness around vehicle security.
While auto crime is decreasing in the Alberni Valley, “This time of year we do see an increase in calls because there are more shoppers out,” RCMP Cpl. Jen Allan said.
“This would be a prime picking ground for a criminal,” she said.
Marlene Flory, a COPS member, has been volunteering at the Lock Out Auto Crime events for several years. She peered into car windows looking for visible items that would entice a thief, such as change in the cup holder, packages, electronics or garage door openers.
COPS members will step up their patrols in the next few months.
editor@albernivalleynews.com