Mark Moniz and his wife received a package at their door, Sunday afternoon. They even received an alert with the exact time of delivery but the $160 item was nowhere in sight.

"It was like a kitchen rolling cart that my wife ordered for the kitchen," Moniz said. "It's kind of a decoration thing for the holidays."

They thought there was a mix-up in the delivery process.

"I ended up calling FedEx, saying hey, you guys delivered to the wrong address,'" Moniz said. "They opened up a claim, then my wife decided to check the Ring doorbell."

The doorbell revealed that there was not a delivery problem but that the Golden Valley residents were victims of a porch pirate.

"This guy pulls in right behind the FedEx driver," Moniz said. "As soon as he pulled out, grabs my package, threw it in the car and left."

This type of crime happens throughout the year but officials say it could increase over the next month as more people order gifts online.

"A lot of people are doing the online shopping or even just mailing gifts to family and friends if they're not getting together as a family," Sarah Johns, Public Information Officer for the Washoe County Sheriff's Office said. "You need to be mindful of any packages that are being delivered as the holiday season, holiday shopping and holiday deliveries are upon us."

Johns says this type of crime may often go unreported. Many victims do not know that their packages were stolen. They think the shipping company delivered it to the wrong address or that it was lost during the process. If your package is stolen, you are encouraged to report it.

"Just make us aware because then we can analyze whether a crime trend is happening in a certain neighborhood," Johns said. "Our deputies could go out and canvass the area and see if there are other victims who may not even know they're victims."

Moniz did report his incident to the sheriff's office. He hopes the video will help catch the perpetrator. Johns says this kind of evidence is very helpful.

"Security cameras have become law enforcement's best friend," Johns said. "You can see the car. You can see the gentleman walking up to the door, see his stature, see what he walked like and maybe somebody out there can identify him."

"That's one of the reasons why I notified the police department is so they would actually look at the video and then somebody might recognize this guy and hopefully this guy gets caught," Moniz said.

If you are expecting a delivery, there are some precautions you can take to reduce your risk of becoming a victim. You should track every package, among other things.

"Maybe you can get that package delivered to your workplace if your workplace allows it, making sure you are home when those packages are anticipated to be delivered or if you have a friend or a neighbor who is going to be in your area when the package is delivered, have them pick it up for you," Johns said. "You can also just have the delivery company keep it at their delivery facility and then you can pick it up at a time that's convenient for you."

You can report a package theft in WCSO's jurisdiction by going to its website or by calling the non-emergency dispatch line at (775) 785-WCSO.

 

 

 

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