Wondering whether your neighbourhood was hit this month by property crime?
The most recent “heat maps” posted on the Vancouver Police Department’s website show that burglaries to businesses, as well as break-ins to vehicles and auto theft, continue at a pace that police haven’t seen in many years.
The Courier reported in October that Vancouver police recorded 10-year highs in the number of thefts from vehicles and break-ins to businesses – increases that have meant the VPD will not reach its goal to reduce overall property crime this year.
The maps capture property crime that occurred between Nov. 9 and 15. For that week alone, there were 29 burglaries to businesses and 81 break-ins to homes and other properties such as sheds and garages.
A total of 203 thefts from vehicles were recorded for the same period and 29 vehicles were stolen. One of the maps shows 27 stolen vehicles were recovered, although it’s not clear whether they are the same ones stolen in that week.
Most of the break-ins to vehicles were centred downtown in the West End and central business district. The other crimes occurred in neighbourhoods across the city. The good news for police and residents is burglaries to homes have decreased, with 1,587 in the first nine months of this year, a 10-year low. See maps below to see whether your neighbourhood was hit.
@Howellings