[Mintjulep]

Originally Posted by graciegirl

Minty.

What a great attitude!

Were the other three, the one robbery and the other two attempted break ins in Sabel Chase too.

Gracie,
I think one burglary was north of 466, and the 2 attempts in the Belvedere area. We are in Virginia trace.
So they were very spread out...

But the crooks will make a mistake soon and it will be over.

I remember the sign the ex Governor of Minnesota had over the entrance to his ranch. It read: "We don't call 911"

[billethkid]

this house has a security system...

Protected by Smith and Wesson.

It is a never miss system.

BTK

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by Muncle

I do not mean to denigrate the losses of those who have been victims. They have suffered both financially and psychologically. And I do feel sorry for them. However, this does not mean that Villagers should develop a siege mentality. Right now, this is a metro area of 70,000 people. Picture any city of 70,000 people back where you came from. Think they had any burglaries last night? And then put those 70,000 people in an area that is financially much worse off than their area and watch the burglary count soar.

Remember, to many of our neighbors in surrounding towns, we in TV are RICH. For those who were here at the time, remember the reply from those scum sucking dogs who killed one of our neighbors a while back. The cretins expected to find stacks of money in the elderly couple's home. When the police asked why, one of the morons replied, "They live in The Villages. Everybody there is rich."

All things considered, TV is quite safe. Yes, there are golf carts stolen and some homes burglarized. I've not heard of any, but there's probably been a mugging or two. And yes, many of these are reported in the Daily Sun (bye the bye, how accurate was the infamous STD story reported in the Leesburg Daily Wipe?), but not all. I agree they could do a better job. But I won't be putting steel bars on my windows or doing NYC locks on my front door. Chill

Ah Muncle, always a voice of sanity. You are right that we are living in a very safe community. However it was a good "heads up" for me as I don't always close my patio doors. Instead I depend on my 70 lb dog to bark. Not a smart plan.

So a little more caution is a good thing.

And I did see the break-in locations, (and even the "almost" break-ins) published in the Daily Sun. So they are keeping residents aware.

[Sidney Lanier]

Originally Posted by Hancle704

And recently near Tiera del Sol.

You hardly hear any mention in the Daily Sun of these increasing number of burglaries. The paper will report crimes in Fruitland Park, Wildwood, Belleview and other communities but rarely a mention of break-ins and thefts in TV.

I know that paper doesn't want to ruin the image of America's Friendliest Hometown but they do residents a disservice by not reporting all of these crimes. This lack of reporting lulls folks into a false sense of security. After all we do live in a community with gates and video recording of cars and license plates. How much do they deter?

Police cannot patrol TV all day in every area. So it is essential that folks start watching out for their neighbors and vice versa and call 911 for every suspicious situation.

Unfortunately, the economic situation will lead to more crime especially against seniors.

The burglaries and the two attempted burglaries (the latter across the street from where we live in Village of Belvedere) were reported in detail in today's (11 Feb 09) Daily Sun, "Local" section.

[starflyte1]

I tried to find the article in The Daily Sun online, but couldn't find it. Ether I did not search the right items or it may not be available online. Has anyone found it online?

[carole131]

Yes, a report appeared on page C4 (should have been on the front page?) of The Villages Daily Sun yesterday, Wednesday, Feb. 11. Forced entry shows a type of boldness that is frightening.

[starflyte1]

Carole, we are not in TV now. Did you see the article in the actual paper or online? Pat

Originally Posted by starflyte1

Carole, we are not in TV now. Did you see the article in the actual paper or online? Pat

usually will not pick up stuff off of the various front pages from each Daily section. They do get the lead stories from each section though.

[carole131]

Nothing online, Starflyte. My neighbor said she heard it from a former neighbor who now lives in NJ, who heard it from a current Villages resident. Bad news travels fast, & wide. Just protect yourself.

[Barefoot]

Originally Posted by Muncle

I do not mean to denigrate the losses of those who have been victims. But this does not mean that Villagers should develop a siege mentality. Right now, this is a metro area of 70,000 people. Picture any city of 70,000 people back where you came from. Think they had any burglaries last night? And then put those 70,000 people in an area that is financially much worse off than their area and watch the burglary count soar.

Muncle puts it all into perspective. TV is still an extremely safe place to live.

Originally Posted by Barefoot

TV is still an extremely safe place to live.

From what I've seen and know about TV I agree wholeheartedly!

My husband and I were on a preview visit the night of the break-in and heard the helicopter circling around for about 15-20 minutes. At the time I was very nervous not knowing what was going on. I kept looking out the window, but could only see the helicopter.

It was frustrating to not find anything about the incident the following day in the Daily Sun. Once we got back home and read what happened on TOTV we were surprised they sent a helicopter (and dogs, but we didn't know about them at the time) to a "cold" burglary.

To put it all in perspective: We currently live in a community that many people describe as "Mayberry." Low crime rate, great schools, excellent police and fire response times, etc... I can guarantee you if I came home and discovered that my house had been burglarized while I was gone and I called the police they would show up. However, it would probably be one officer, perhaps accompanied by a community service officer who would collect evidence. Compare that to TV where a husband and wife come home only to find out that their privacy had been invaded by criminals who stole thousands of dollars worth of their property. The homeowners saw nothing, no people, no sounds and the bad guys were gone. Yet, the local law enforcement responded with a HUGE presence.

This type of response by law enforcement says a lot about the community. I'm looking forward to moving to TV and exchanging my current Mayberry to TV where it is obviously a "Mayberry to the Max." kind of place.

Kudos to the police and the people of TV who look after each other so well.

[KathieI]

Sorry, I can't agree, nothing is EXTREMELY safe these days. It is very prudent to be cautious and careful. I received an email this morning from a neighbor and we might put together a community watch group. We now have exchanged all phone numbers and emails and we are trying to develop a tight group to protect ourselves.
After living in middle of Manhattan and in the center of Los Angeles, yes, TV is a pretty safe place, but never let your defenses down. Don't think we need guns but I myself am planning to have a motion light put in my backyard, anything that you can do to deter these invaders would be good. Obviously, dogs aren't enough.
Be safe folks!!

Originally Posted by KathieI

Sorry, I can't agree, nothing is EXTREMELY safe these days. It is very prudent to be cautious and careful. Be safe folks!!

Oh don't get me wrong Kathie, I didn't mean to sound like my defenses would be dropped. Our doors are locked even when we are home. All I really meant was that even though there have been a recent rash of burglaries, TV is a relatively safe place compared to many other cities.

We know we will have a house alarm when we live in TV. Another thing we have been considering all along is whether or not to have cameras as well. The jury is still out regarding the camera issue.

[samhass]

I wonder if the swaying palms will set off your motion detectors?