Black Friday and Cyber Monday have just wrapped up which means people will be expecting lots of packages coming in - and so are porch pirates.
This is the time of year where the Carson City Sheriff's Office sees an increase in stolen packages. And that's why they're saying you should get those gifts off your porch as soon as possible.
Sheriff Ken Furlong says, "Often we receive notices that our packages have been dropped off. If you receive a notice, get to your house and get those packages off the porch. If you can, have a neighbor secure them, take them in in the middle of the day if you can't be home to get them off the porch."
Sheriff Furlong says this is a critical time for neighbors to be able to rely on each other and it's also a good time to install surveillance cameras such as the Ring doorbells. You can also send your packages to more secure places such as your work or a PO box.
"Schedule your deliveries for opportune times if you can with the businesses," adds Furlong.
Besides surveillance and neighborhood lookouts, some people are getting creative in protecting their belongings.
You may remember us reporting a few years ago how one man in Utah tracked a porch pirate. After getting packages stolen multiple times in a week, one gentleman decides to put an air tag on a box. The thief once again steals the box, the man tracks his location, then calls the police getting the porch pirate arrested.
Sheriff Furlong says if your package does get stolen, make sure to report it no matter how small. He tells us these reports help their patrol units focus on different areas in the community where porch pirates are targeting.
"That allows us to get resources into those areas, identify problems, hopefully take that lead of stifling them."
