By JOHN BURNETT
By JOHN BURNETT
Tribune-Herald staff writer
Lock the front door — and while you’re at it, bolt the back door and latch the windows, too.
There has been an average of 80-plus burglary reports a month on the Big Island since March, according to an unofficial tally taken by the Tribune-Herald using police incident logs going back the past four months, including 92 in June and 91 in April. The Tribune-Herald wanted to count burglary reports starting January 1 this year, but a change in the format of the logs in January caused a technical glitch, and many of the reports from January and February weren’t available.
“There was an increase in the number of reported burglaries in both the Hilo and the Puna district,” police Lt. Greg Esteban of the Hilo Criminal Investigations Section said late last week.
In June, there were 38 reported burglaries in the South Hilo district, which includes Pepeekeo and Papaikou, and 41 reported burglaries in May. That’s up from 32 burglaries in April and only 14 in March.
The Puna district, which has a reputation for a high number of burglaries, had 18 reports in March and 19 in April, then increased to 24 in May and an eye-popping 41 in June.
Kona police actually recorded a decrease in burglary reports over the past couple of months. There were 15 reports in March and 19 in April, while the numbers dropped to 13 in May and 10 in June.
Ka‘u reported only 12 burglaries and South Kohala 12 during the four-month period, while the news was even better in Hamakua, North Kohala and North Hilo, whose reports were in the single-digit range.
Islandwide, there were 92 burglary reports in June and 91 in May, up from 78 in April and 63 in March.
In early June, police reported a rash of burglaries in the Waiakea Houselots neighborhood of Hilo and notified residents using the county Civil Defense agency’s automated telephone notification system.
Lt. John Briski of Hilo Community Policing said at the time that numerous residents of the area called police to set up an appointment for a free home security inspection.
Briski said both then and on Monday that he believes the uptick in burglaries is due to “growing pains” in the community.
“I know a lot of people believe that we’re a small town and they’ve always felt safe with their doors unlocked,” he said. “But we have to move forward and realize that times have changed.”
“People need to lock their doors and windows when they’re away from home,” Briski continued. “As far as I’m concerned, they should lock them when they’re at home, as well.”
Briski said that identifying stolen property once it’s recovered is often “a challenge” for the department, and added that people need to document their valuables in case they are stolen.
“Residents should take down the serial numbers of their electronic equipment and put them in a secure place,” he said. “They also need to photograph their jewelry and make notes of the engravings.”
In addition, he said that all medications should be securely locked up.
For a free home security check, call the Community Policing Division at 961-2350.
Email John Burnett at
jburnett@hawaiitribune-
herald.com.