Leaving valuables in the car while running errands is not a good idea.
That was a lesson learned by residents who left a purse or other items in plain view and returned from shopping, working out’even church’to find thieves smashed a car window and ran off with loot found inside.
Although thieves make a fairly common practice of breaking car windows to steal valuables from vehicles in residential areas during the night, police have seen a spike in the same type of crime in more public areas, and in broad daylight.
‘It’s a rare occurrence in Independence Township,? said Sgt. Matt Baldes of the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office Independence Township substation. ‘But very recently we’ve seen an increase in this type of activity. It’s normally an impulse or opportunity crime. These individuals are not necessarily staking out cars in a parking lot.?
Still, it’s best to refrain from leaving any sort of valuables in view. Either lock them in the trunk, put them under the seat, cover them with a coat or other object, or take them with you, he said.
‘We get kids who will go through and do an entire neighborhood. This is different because it’s spotty’it’s not like we’re getting 3 or 4 at one business. Usually they go through and check for locked doors. They’re doing it in broad daylight, get in, get out.?
Neighborhood LFAs’larceny from an automobile? are down after the Independence Township board last year approved funding for two dedicated patrol officers’deputies who spend the entire shift patrolling neighborhoods to deter would-be thieves.
Still, the crime has not disappeared from township subdivisions.
‘People just don’t lock their doors,? said Baldes. ‘These kids will go through neighborhoods checking car doors. Out of 100 cars they find 50 open.?
Culprits, he said, are usually in their late teens, and either sell the merchandise they steal to pawn shops or friends, trade it for drugs or simply give it away.
‘People think it’s going to happen to everyone else, not them,? said Baldes. ‘They think they live in Clarkston and it’s a safe area. But people come here from surrounding areas to rob houses or cars, especially in the summer.?

Where did it happen?
Family Video 5480 Sashabaw Road: Around 7:45 p.m. Sunday, May 27, a 52-year-old Waterford woman left her purse in the front seat, locked her 2006 Saturn Vue and ran into the store. She returned 10 minutes later to find a window smashed and her purse gone.
Powerhouse Gym 6475 Sashabaw Road: Just before 6 p.m. Tuesday, June 5, a 26-year-old Lake Orion woman parked her 2001 Chevy Impala in the lot behind Powerhouse Gym, locked the doors and went inside. The woman was away from her vehicle about 10 minutes, but returned to find a window smashed out and a $400 leather Coach bag gone.
Mr. B’s Roadhouse 6761 Dixie Highway: A 37-year-old Northville man finished his shift around midnight June 24, and went to the parking lot to find a window on his 2000 Ford Focus smashed. A child’s wallet, containing nothing of value, was missing.
Outback Steak House 6435 Dixie Highway: A 17-year-old employee from Waterford left her locked car in the restaurant’s parking lot around 5 p.m. Around closing time, she discovered a smashed window and a purse and digital camera missing from her 1996 Saturn.
LaBella Salon 4565 Pelton: A woman left her purse on the front passenger seat, locked the doors on her 2005 Dodge Durango and entered the salon around 1:30 p.m. Thursday, July 5. An hour later she discovered a window in the vehicle smashed, and her purse missing.
Deer Lake Raquet Club 6167 White Lake Road: A 45-year-old West Bloomfield woman parked her car in the club’s lot around 5 p.m. July 5. When she returned to her 2002 Mercury Mountineer 10 minutes later, she found the passenger side window broken and her purse, which she’d left on the center console, missing.
Big Boy Restaurant 4660 Dixie Highway: A 46-year-old Tennessee woman visiting relatives in the area locked her 2000 Toyota van and entered the restaurant around 12:15 p.m. Sunday July 8. She returned 45 minutes later to find the window smashed out and her purse, which she’d left on the front seat, missing.