As of the 2024 - 2025 year, the Crime Watch Committee head is Christy Bryan.

The Holidays are here again 🎅

It’s hard to believe the stores are already decorated and playing music for the holidays, and yet, here we are! This season brings much merriment and quality time spent with the ones we love. But it also brings a lot of opportunity for “bad guys” to take advantage of you and your property.

Take some extra precautions in the coming months to stay safe and secure.

Tips for when you’re at home:

• Try to bring your deliveries and packages inside as soon as possible to reduce the risk of porch piracy.

• Utilize your home security system as often as possible, yes, even when you’re home. Break-ins most often occur during the daytime because burglars assume you’re at work.

• Lock your vehicles, take your keys with you, hide your belongings. You’d be surprised how often folks leave valuables in plain site on the seats and consoles of their vehicles — this makes you an easy target for robbery and car jackers.

• Do NOT answer your door for people you don’t know and weren’t expecting. Scammers and other ill-intentioned people take advantage of this time of year to pose as representatives from charitable organizations or contractors looking for work. You are not obligated to answer your door for strangers; utilize your doorbell camera to speak to unknown individuals.

• Slow down when driving through the neighborhood - remember that many children have several weeks off from school around the holidays, so they’re going to be having fun playing outdoors. Pay extra attention as you’re navigating the roads.

• If you see something, say something! We are all the keepers of this neighborhood - that includes staying vigilant about our surroundings. If you see someone behaving unusually (ie: wandering around houses, peering over fences, driving aimlessly through the streets or alleys, etc), do not hesitate to report it to 9-1-1 or the non emergency line: 972-424-5678. If you ever feel threatened or in fear for your life, call 9-1-1 immediately.

Tips for when you’re traveling out of town:

• Resist the urge to mention your trip on social media. We know it’s tempting to want to share all your exciting travel plans, but you don’t want to tip off a burglar when you’re away from home.

• Make an inventory of your valuables, including serial numbers and photos.

• Use a vacation hold for your newspapers and mail, or ask a trusted neighbor to pick them up. If these things pile up, it could indicate to robbers that no one is home.

• Park your car inside the garage and ask a neighbor to park in your driveway occasionally to make it look like your home is occupied.

• Put at least one indoor light on a timer, preferably one close to the front door or windows. Leave your exterior lights on while away that way your home is always illuminated overnight. Lighting is one of the most underestimated deterrents of property related crimes.

• Arrange for your lawn to stay trimmed if you’re going to be away for extended periods of time.

• Lock all fence gates (especially if you have a swimming pool).

Ultimately, staying safe and secure around the holidays is not much different than any other time of the year, it just requires a little more diligence and awareness. I hope this season brings all the light and love you could hope for - stay safe and enjoy!

Resources from Plano Police Department

Registered Sex Offenders - www.familywatchdog.us

Texas Public Sex Offender Registry

Facebook – Plano Texas Police Department

Instagram – @planopolicedept

Community Camera Program – https://www.plano.gov/2356/Community-Camera-Program

• By registering your camera with the police department, they can quickly identify nearby cameras that may have captured criminal activity. You will only be contacted if there is a criminal incident in the vicinity of your security camera.

Crime Map – www.communitycrimemap.com

Nextdoor - Office David Tilley is very active (search in your app store)

Youtube - Officer Christopher Bianez has a channel with “Safety Minute” videos covering many topics - binge watch them all!

Neighbors by Ring (app) – this is a neighborhood app to share alerts, comment on local issues and help make our communities safer for everyone. With this app, you can exactly draw the size of your neighborhood on a map and filter your feed with topics of interest. (search in your app store)

Text “planopd” to 555888 to download the free Neighbors App to see what’s going on in your community.

Citizens Police Academy - The Plano Police Department sponsors the Citizens Police Academy (CPA) with the goal of educating the residents of Plano on the operations of the department. The CPA is led by the Crime Prevention Unit, with all lectures and activities taught by Police Officers whose current assignments are directly involved in the policing activities covered in their segment of the academy. The CPA is conducted at the Plano-Richardson Police Training Center where the Plano and Richardson Police Agencies conduct their training. The equipment used during the CPA is the same equipment used to train Police Officers.

When not serving in her professional and volunteer roles, she also runs side businesses as a Mary Kay Beauty Consultant and a Real Estate Open House Host. In her free time, she enjoys date nights with her husband and playtime with her toddler.