Culver City police are offering extra patrols to homeowners who are spending the holidays out of town.
Jennifer Atenza, spokesperson for the department, said it’s part of the police department's vacation check program.
“It's something that we actually offer all year long,” she told KNX News Karen Adams. “We just definitely encourage it through the holiday season. As we know, a lot of people are traveling and many take a lot of time away from their residences.”
Homeowners can call the department at 310-253-6208 or come into the department and provide officers details about how long they’ll be away.
“We can have our patrol officers keep an extra set of eyes and just go through their regular patrol duties as they're going through the neighborhoods,” Atenza said. “They'll do an extra patrol check of the residents to make sure that there's no suspicious activity and everything's secured.”
Atenza added that homeowners should take extra steps to protect their homes against potential home invaders while they’re away.
“Making sure that all of your windows have window locks secured, making sure that your doors are all secured, and exterior lighting…motion sensor lighting is fantastic as a deterrent,” she said. “Making sure that those lighting timers, if you have the ability to set a timer, are set prior to nightfall.”
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She also encouraged homeowners to check for vulnerabilities around their properties.
“Just kind of being mindful of, ‘OK, where are the weak points?’” Atenza said. “And if I was up to no good, where would I try to get in? And then making sure that you're taking steps to strengthen those weak areas.”
For those who don’t live in Culver City, Atenza said to check with other local police departments as many offer similar vacation check programs.
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