Police urge residents to prevent porch pirates, report suspicious activity

Police officials say crimes are often prevented when citizens report suspected illegal activity. That’s especially true when it comes to combatting “porch pirates.” With only a few weeks until Christmas, deliveries are already arriving on doorsteps. The WFPD is enlisting the public’s help to ensure the rightful owners receive those packages.

As the popularity of online shopping and home delivery continues to increase, so does the threat posed by porch pirates. Police say these offenders may not intend to target a particular home but may walk or drive by an area and see an easy target where something of perceived value can be taken quickly without notice. In other instances, these criminals follow delivery drivers around and wait until a package or packages are dropped off. Once the courier is out of sight, the packages are stolen.

Police encourage residents to stay alert and report all crime and suspicious activity. If you see a package being stolen from a neighbor’s home, call police and report a “crime in progress.”

Wake Forest Police are also encouraging residents to be mindful of the following tips to help avoid being the target of porch pirates:

Require Package Signature

If you must sign for your items, then your packages cannot be left on the doorstep. Instead, the courier will leave a note letting you know the date they will try to make another delivery or where you can pick up the item instead.

Deliver Packages to Your Work

If allowed, have your items delivered to your place of work. It may be a bit more inconvenient to load up items and take them home, but at least they will not be stolen.

Delivery Service Tracking

Sign up for delivery service notifications. Both FedEx and UPS offer these services for free. You get an alert when a package is set to be delivered. That way, you can arrange for someone to be home when it will arrive. If you are a member of UPS My Choice, you can upgrade your service for an annual fee. This will allow you to change the delivery address for any package or even change the delivery date to fit your schedule. That way, it will not be left on your doorstep.

Deliver to a Friend or Family Member

If you know someone who is home during the day, you might ask to use their address for delivery. That way, it will not sit on a doorstep and risk being stolen.

Designate a Specific Delivery Location

The USPS can allow you to authorize them to leave packages at locations other than the porch. Other locations may include a back door, side door, neighbor, or even a garage. To find out if this is an option, create an account with the USPS and enter your package tracking number.

Use a Secure Mailbox Service

Sign up for a PO Box at the post office or even a location such as the UPS Store. You can have all packages delivered to these locations, and they will be held securely until you stop by and pick them up. There are fees associated with these services, but it might end up saving you money on those packages that are at risk of being stolen.

Be a Good Neighbor

Get to know your neighbors to help one another out by picking up packages you see outside, then send texts or emails to alert one another what you’ve done. That way the parcels are safe inside and won’t be grabbed by thieves.

Always, as a good neighbor, be alert and report all crime and suspicious activity. If you see a package being stolen from a neighbor’s home, call 911 and report a “crime in progress.”

In addition, if you see someone acting suspicious or a vehicle that might be casing the neighborhood, call police immediately with an accurate description of the suspect(s) and / or vehicle as well as exactly what they were doing. Being a good neighbor is always the best defense against crime.