(HURON COUNTY, ON) – Huron County Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) officers including investigators from the Huron County Property Crimes Unit are busy investigating a recent string of vehicle thefts in Huron County. During a five hour window between 11:30 p.m. on November 9, 2013 and 4:30 a.m. on November 10, 2013 four pickup trucks were stolen within a short distance of each other in North Huron & Huron East.
A Chevrolet Silverado was stolen from Reid Road, a GMC Sierra was stolen from Belfast Road, a Dodge Ram was stolen from Nature Centre Road and a GMC Sierra was stolen from Brandon Road in Huron East.
All of the stolen trucks have since been recovered in good condition; however a Soviet Simonov SKS Semi-Automatic rifle with a laminate wood stock remains outstanding. It had been left inside one of the trucks.
The stolen pickups were all left unlocked. Some owners left the keys in the ignition while others left the keys under the floor mat. In all likelihood, these opportunistic thefts would’ve been prevented had the keys been removed from the vehicle. Huron County OPP urges property owners to take crime prevention a step further than simply putting your ignition key under the floor mat.
A real concern for the Huron County OPP Property Crimes investigators is the stolen vehicles are quite often used in the commission of other crimes such as thefts, break and enters and robberies. Often the criminals will flee crime scenes in these stolen vehicles travelling at very high and dangerous speeds.
“Evidently, some property owners are failing to take basic steps to secure their property. Our officers continue to investigate vehicle thefts where the doors have been left unlocked and the keys have been left in the vehicle. These are crimes that could’ve easily been prevented. Property owners need to consider the fact that these stolen vehicles allow criminals the opportunity to carry out further crimes in our local communities. Let’s not make it easy for these criminals. Be proactive and do your part around home by securing your vehicles. Together we can make a difference in reducing criminal activity in our neighbourhoods.†– Huron County OPP Sergeant Dale Bray.
Any person with information regarding these incidents should immediately contact the Huron OPP at 1-888-310-1122 or (519) 524-8314.
Should you wish to remain anonymous, you may call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477), where you may be eligible to receive a cash reward of up to $2,000.