After 53 auto burglaries in January, CPD recommends basic precautions
Feb. 2—CHEYENNE — Though there has been an uptick in local vehicle burglaries over the past month, the Cheyenne Police Department said the number isn't yet a cause for significant concern.
In a Silent Witness press release issued on Jan. 20, CPD reported that more than 50 instances of theft had occurred at an array of locations throughout the city between Dec. 17 and Jan. 17.
Both public information officer Alex Farkas and Chief Mark Francisco said this is an unusually high number, but it's impossible to tell if this sudden boost in theft is a sign of a developing trend.
"Your personal security always should be at the forefront of your thinking, so it's just better if you take some steps to minimize your risk," Francisco said. "I don't know that we're at the point that people need to be worried that their car window is gonna get broken and people are just gonna actually start looking for things, but I think some precautions can certainly lessen your risk."
CPD is recommending residents pay better attention to locking their vehicles, even when leaving the car unattended while warming it on a cold morning. Most importantly, residents should remove any valuable items from their car that might encourage someone to break in, such as wallets, electronics, purses, bags and firearms.
According to statistics provided by CPD, this string of burglaries is a significant increase when compared to the previous two Januarys.
In both January 2021 and 2022, CPD logged 12 vehicle burglaries. From Jan. 1-31 this year, the unofficial number of vehicle burglaries is 53, though this number may change by the time the data is made official sometime in February.
Last month's total amounts to roughly 15% of the 352 vehicle burglaries in 2022.
Larceny/theft offenses and burglary/breaking and entering are similarly classified in the National Incident-Based Reporting System, which CPD uses to collect crime data. However, there are differences between the definitions of what constitutes "larceny" vs. "burglary."
"For example," Farkas wrote in an email to the WTE, "under larceny/theft from a vehicle, property can be stolen from the vehicle itself (like a license plate or catalytic converter), while under burglary to a vehicle, property could be stolen from inside (like a cellphone or firearm)."
However, another uncommon factor in this string of burglaries is that more than half of the cases involved break-ins. A possible cause could be that there's a smaller number of burglars that are sticking to one method, but Francisco said it's too early to make assumptions based off one month of information.
Because the burglary locations are spread out across Cheyenne, it's tempting to assume that there is more than one perpetrator. Generally, though, a string of break-ins are conducted by a small group of people who "decide to go on a spree."
"The 'door-puller' people just go around and check every car, but if they're locked, they kind of move on," Francisco said. "It's probably a little bit out of the ordinary to have that (high off a) number where they're actually broken into.
"Again, that could lead to directly to an individual or a small group that (has) decided that this is the way they're going to operate."
Francisco said he is confident about the current leads the department is pursuing.
CPD's goal is to have a better idea statistically as to the number of suspects it's searching for by the end February.
Will Carpenter is the Wyoming Tribune Eagle's Arts and Entertainment/Features Reporter. He can be reached by email at wcarpenter@wyomingnews.com or by phone at 307-633-3135. Follow him on Twitter @will_carp_.
