www.governorsgrovehoa.com
Neighborhood Watch News
September 18, 2011
Greeting Governors Grove Residents,
We would like to introduce ourselves - I, Andrew Northrop, and my wife Sharon and are leading the Neighborhood Watch effort. As many folks may now know, over the Labor Day weekend there were a couple attempted break-ins and one actual break-in.
Since then, we have contacted and spoken with a Fairfax County Police Department detective as well as the crime unit officer. We have been informed that the report of these incidents is not ready for release yet. Here are the details:
As best as we can surmise, the burglar/perpetrator was seen leaving an end unit by the homeowner and one other resident. The resident reported the perpetrator to be a young (late teens to early twenties) African-American male, about 5'10", 150 lbs, with sender build. It was noted that this unit had the garage open and the residents were in and around the home. The police were immediately called and officers responded along with a K-9 unit and a helicopter. During all this, a home alarm in another end unit had gone off, also alerting the police. It appears that the perpetrator had attempted to break into this end unit through the back gate and damaged the sliding glass door. He did not get into the home (deterred by the alarm). It then appears that the perpetrator saw or was alerted to the end unit with the open garage, ran in, attempted to conduct a snatch and grab, and left out the back door.
A resident also saw a young female on a bicycle ride behind their row of townhouses just before this break-in activity happened. Later, the police helicopter noted a girl on the bike with a guy running beside her - heading down Burgundy Road, the neighborhood behind the open field across from the tennis courts. It appears that she may have been acting as a “spotter.” We also have had reports from several residents of seeing young adults riding bikes through our community and who appeared to be scouting the neighborhood.
In addition to this, on different dates, we have had several occurrences of young adults/teenagers hanging out in the tot-lot area. Residents have asked them to leave and on one occasion the police were called and they removed the group from the area.
Helpful Tips and Practices:
- Criminals are clearly getting more daring and brazen. As we live near the beltway and the metro and we are an affluent neighborhood, we are prime targets.
- Lock your homes and close your garages no matter how short of a period of time you leave your home.
- Keep vigilant, stay aware of your surroundings. If you observe suspicious people, and you are comfortable doing so, challenge them – ask them their purpose or if they live here. Ask them if they are a Governor's’ Grove resident or politely ask them to show proof. Otherwise, or if in doubt, call the FCPD non-emergency number at 703-691-2131.
- Make sure windows and doors are locked.
- Carry cell phones with you when walking around the neighborhood. Also it’s advisable to carry a flashlight.
- Exterior lighting – make sure all exterior lights work and are on at night – these include porch and stair lights. End units in particular, due to the dark common areas and ease of access as a Thru-way, should have their exterior lights functioning and even use additional motion sensor flood lighting along the side and back areas.
- Vehicles – Lock your cars. Remove all valuables from your car. Items include, but not limited to, GPS’s, Satellite radios, phones, laptops, briefcases, jewelry, etc.
- Security Systems – place the security system signs around the home. We recommend having glass breaking sensors and/or motion sensor installed in the home.
Going Out of Town?
- Suspend newspaper delivery and mail, or have someone pick it up.
- Have someone collect any package deliveries.
- Use timer lighting throughout the home to give the appearance of at home presence.
- Do NOT share on FACEBOOK (or any other social network sites), with dog walkers, or your house cleaning service your out of town plans.
If residents observe or become aware of any other type of incidents in the neighborhood, please contact us, as we, the GG Neighbor Watch group, are interested in knowing and tracking this information. It helps us keep the community informed. Please email us at Watch@governorsgrovehoa.com
Thank you,
Andrew and Sharon Northrop
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