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

Cobb County Police Department Helpful Links and Information

New Cobb Police Headquarters, Central Records, and Permits location

545 S. Fairground Street
Marietta, GA 30060
770-499-3900

To Obtain Police Reports

• Must have a valid I.D.
• Payment for the report

Obtaining Accident Reports

Accident reports are generally available for pick up 3-5 business days after the event. There is a $5.00 charge for all non-involved parties.

Obtain an accident report in person:

Involved parties can go to any precinct or Police Headquarters. Non-involved parties must go to Police Headquarters. A valid form of identification will be requested.

Obtain an accident report by mail:

Mail a request, a copy of a valid form of identification, and a self-addressed stamped envelope to:

Cobb County Police Department
Central Records
545 South Fairground Street
Marietta, Georgia 30060

Obtain an accident report by email:

Please send an email request to policeopenrecordsofficer@cobbcounty.org with a copy of valid photo identification.

Obtain an Accident Report Online:

https://cobbpd.policetocitizen.com/Home

Obtaining Incident Reports

Incident reports that are 10 or more pages are 10¢ per page for non-involved parties. To obtain a copy of an incident report:

In-person:

Involved parties can go to any of the five Cobb County precincts or Central Records to obtain a copy of most incident reports. Parties not listed as involved on the reports, or parties requesting reports involving juveniles, domestic violence, rape, or stalking must go to Central Records to obtain a copy of the report.

Via Email:

Email the request to policeopenrecordsofficer@cobbcounty.org. Reports involving juveniles, domestic violence, rape, or stalking can only be obtained at Central Records.

Mail:

Send your request to the address listed above.

Online:

https://cobbpd.policetocitizen.com/Home

Vehicle/Impound Release

A release form for an impounded vehicle may be obtained from the precinct from where it was impounded, or from Central Records at Police Headquarters. Proof of ownership and a valid form of identification will be required. Proof of ownership may be a certificate of title, tag receipt, bill of sale, GCIC VIN/tag returns, or other such evidence that specifically describes the vehicle.

If there is a hold on the vehicle, it shall not be released without the permission of the authorizing officer.

A 3rd party who is sent by the owner to pick up a vehicle must have:

• A valid form of identification; and
• A signed and notarized letter from the owner specifically naming 1) the individual to pick up the vehicle, and 2) a description of the vehicle, to include the vehicle make, model, color, and VIN (or tag number); and
• Proof that the signatory owns the vehicle.

Pay a Citation:

https://cobbstatecourtpayments.com/

Submit a Crime Tip or Suspicious Activity

https://cobbcounty.seamlessdocs.com/f/crime_tip

Current Crime Trends

Entering Autos

Our current crime trends continue to be entering autos. The overnight residential entering autos and vehicle thefts related to those entering autos have increased due to the key fob or spare key left in vehicles. The most common method is theft from unlocked vehicles. It appears, if nothing of value is in view and the doors are locked, the perpetrators move on to the next unlocked vehicle. All the recent entering autos cases were vehicles that were unlocked.  At the very least:

1. Lock your vehicle
2. Remove weapons 
3. DO NOT leave spare key in vehicle or fob if push start

When you park your vehicle away from your home and If you can’t take valuables and weapons with you when you leave your vehicle, stop prior to parking in the parking lot and lock items in the glovebox, center console, or trunk. Perpetrators will sit in the parking lot and watch you hide or lock valuables in your trunk. Also, double-check that ALL vehicle doors are locked.

*Update*

The recent increase in entering autos incidents, all have been unlocked vehicles. The vehicles have been parked in the driveways of residences. Videos from home security systems showed the suspects walking up to vehicles and checking the door handles. If the doors were unlocked, they entered the vehicle, rummaged through any contents, and took whatever valuables they were interested in. In one video, the suspect even opened and checked the trunk of a sedan. Their objective is to steal as much property from unlocked vehicles as possible without being detected so there are no reports of broken windows. If a vehicle was locked, they moved on to another vehicle. This is the most common practice of an entering auto thief.

No one can guarantee that a thief will not break out your vehicle window but incident data shows that forced entry to a vehicle’s window usually correlates with valuables inside the vehicle that are visible from outside the vehicle.

Again, remove all valuables from your parked vehicles, especially firearms. Lock your doors, even when parked at your residence. These two practices statistically reduce your chances of being an entering auto victim.

What You Can Do to Prevent Theft

Burglary Prevention

• Lock your doors, including the one from the garage.
• Keep garage doors closed-check before bed every night.
• Use motion sensor-activated lighting.
• Use 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

• Use anti-theft mailboxes with a special locking system.
• Use 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.

Online Registration Form

 

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 T.M. Fuller
Det. Sergeant T.J. Richie
Cobb County Police Department
Criminal Investigation Unit Pct. 5
4640 Dallas Highway
Powder Springs, GA 30127
(770) 499-4578