The holidays are here and so are package pirates.
Package thieves make moves year round, but Master Corporal Michel Eckerd with New Castle County Police Department says they sees an increase every year in December.
“There is an understandable uptick around this time of year. A lot of people shy away from the brick-and-mortar stores and do more shopping online. But we do have it, package theft, constantly throughout the year. Especially with the high ticket items, like cell phones, the Dell boxes, the stuff that’s labeled on the outside of the box.”
Eckerd says package theft is a crime of opportunity happening everywhere and no demographic is more or less susceptible to it.
“The people see the boxes no matter where you are. Whether it’s a rural house or whether it’s a house in the community or a house in an urban setting, they’re going to see the box there and that’s just going to make them interested and go up to the box and just try to grab it.”
NCCPD recently released a PSA on their website detailing how packages can be kept safe from package pirates.
It recommends requesting a signature upon delivery or delivering to an Amazon Locker or FedEx or UPS store. Another option is sending packages to friends or relatives who are home during normal delivery hours.
Eckerd says installing security cameras is another potential solution that also helps law enforcement catch thieves. He adds footage is often released on the county police Facebook page to ask residents for an identification.