Precinct 5 PENS October 2019
Welcome to this month’s PENS, Police Email Notification System bulletin. This monthly bulletin is brought to you from the Cobb County Police, Precinct 5 Criminal Investigations Unit (CIU5) and is designed to keep you aware of safety alerts and crime trends in your area and measures you can take to keep you and your family safe.
Public Safety Topic of the Month
Trick or Treat Tips
Make sure your kids dress up safely
- Make sure costumes are flame retardant so children aren't in danger near burning jack-o-lanterns.
- Keep costumes short to prevent trips, falls, and other bumps in the night.
- Try make-up instead of a mask. Masks can be hot and uncomfortable, and they can obstruct a child's vision; a dangerous thing when kids are crossing streets and going up and down steps.
- Make sure kids wear light colors or put reflective tape on their costumes.
Make trick-or-treating trouble free
- Trick-or-treaters should always be in groups so they aren't a tempting target. Parents should accompany young children.
- Exercise extreme caution when driving a vehicle.Be on the alert for excited youngsters, whose vision may be obscured by masks darting out into traffic.
- Remind kids to keep a safe distance from moving cars.
- Cross only at street corners, never between parked cars, and never diagonally across an intersection.
Upcoming Events
2nd Annual Cool Cars and Cops Car Show/Festival
The Cobb County Police Community Affairs Unit and the West Cobb Business Association are hosting the 2nd Annual Cool Cars and Cops Car Show/Festival on November 2, 2019 from 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. at Lost Mountain Baptist Church on 5400 Old Dallas Rd, Powder Springs, GA 30127
- The event will have a Large Car Show, a Trunk-or-Treat (have kids dress up in Halloween costumes), inflatables, food trucks, and more
- They are looking for club and individual car enthusiasts to display ALL types (Classics, Exotics, Tuners, Projects)
- $10 entry fee per vehicle. All fees raised support Christmas programs hosted by Community Affairs Unit
Contact Brianna Anders at Brianna.Anders@cobbcounty.org to reserve a car spot or if you have questions.
Current Crime Trends
Entering Autos
Ladies and Gentlemen, our current crime trends continue to be Entering Autos. The bulk of the Entering Autos are taking place overnight and early in the morning. The majority of all the Entering Autos have been UNLOCKED vehicles with valuables including guns left inside. PLEASE remove all valuables, especially guns, from your vehicles every time you park and leave the vehicle. Also, double check that ALL vehicle doors are locked.
Arrest Warrant Phone Scam
Ladies and Gentlemen, over the past two years people have been receiving random phone calls advising them that they currently have arrest warrants and need to pay money. These phone calls are a SCAM! The scammer on the phone is scaring the person by telling them that they have arrest warrants that need to be taken care of and that local law enforcement is going to come and arrest them unless they pay the fines. They are telling the person that they need to go and buy gift/pay cards and provide them with the numbers off of the cards. This allows the scammer to log into those accounts and transfer the money to their own accounts. The scammer might also ask the person to use a payment app to transfer funds. Again this is a SCAM! No law enforcement agency is going to call you and ask for money over the phone.
What You Can Do
Burglary Prevention
- Lock your doors, including the one from the garage
- Keep garage doors closed-check before bed every night
- Motion sensor activated lighting
- Surveillance cameras
Entering Auto Prevention
- Lock your vehicles and remove items of value and items that appear to contain valuables.
- If you can’t keep them with you, secure your valuables in the trunk before reaching your location.
- Keep your vehicle locked and your purse or wallet on your person while fueling at the gas station.
Postal Theft
- Anti-Theft mailboxes with a special locking system
- Security Cameras
- Do not raise the mail flag
- Do not send cash, checks, or anything that has credit card information
Remember to CALL 911 to report any suspicious persons or activity. If you see something, say something!
Cobb County Camera Registry
The Cobb County Police Camera Registration program is a police/community video partnership that operates on a voluntary basis with homeowners, neighborhoods and business owners who own private video surveillance systems. We encourage both businesses and residents to register their cameras online by completing the form below.
This program is intended to let our officers know where cameras are active in the county in case a crime occurs. It is not intended for active surveillance, and officers will not have direct access to homeowners' cameras. Those who register a camera will be contacted if a crime occurs in the vicinity of that camera.
Information provided by residents and businesses will be maintained in a secure database.
If you have not already signed up to receive the monthly PENS updates, please subscribe. Feel free to forward this e-mail to your HOA members and local businesses.
PENS is also sending out bulletins and alerts through its partnership with Nextdoor.com. Discover if your neighborhood is already signed up so you may join. If not, they will provide you with the necessary information.
Stay Safe,
Det. Lieutenant J.B Wade
Det. Sergeant W.R. Pettitt
Det. Sergeant R.E. Hecksher
Criminal Investigation Unit Pct. 5
4640 Dallas Highway
Powder Springs, GA 30127
(770) 499-4578