As Christmas lights and inflatable snowmen make their annual holiday appearances, so do porch package thieves.
Montgomery County police expect to see an increase in such crimes during this season as package delivery volumes increase.
This week is predicted to be the busiest mailing, shipping and delivery week, when nearly 3 billion pieces of mail will be processed and delivered, according to the U.S. Postal Service. UPS expects to deliver 630 million packages between Thanksgiving and Jan. 1.
Instances of package theft are classified under criminal thefts so police do not have statistics on the frequency of the specific crime, but they’ve received reports throughout the county, Sgt. Rebecca Innocenti, a police spokeswoman, said.
The department suggests delivery alternatives such as sending items to carrier locations, a neighbor who is home, or using in-store pickup.
“We always encourage people to have packages delivered to a place where someone is there,” Innocenti said.
Notification services are available to track shipments and many carriers provide the option to give delivery instructions to drivers. The department also recommends insuring packages.
The county is home to a plethora of secure Amazon Locker locations, including nearly two dozen in Bethesda, Rockville and Silver Spring, according to the company’s package pickup map.
Police continue to investigate two thefts on Wheatridge Drive in Germantown believed to have been committed by the same person responsible for other thefts in the area.
Packages were taken from the front door of a home in the 17900 block of Wheatridge Drive at 4:50 p.m. and the porch of a residence in the 18000 block of Wheatridge Drive at 5:22 p.m. on Dec. 4.
The suspect left the second location in a dark-colored, four-door vehicle, and security cameras recorded the thefts.
Home surveillance systems have become increasingly popular in the county, Innocenti said. Police have a difficult time catching package thieves without video evidence or eyewitness accounts, she said.
The department encourages residents to call if they notice suspicious activity such as drivers closely following delivery trucks or people going door-to-door checking porches, and police have already received related calls this season, Innocenti said.
“Certainly we need the community’s assistance,” Innocenti said.
