Black Friday begins the annual Christmas shopping season. It’s also begins the season where criminals look for easy pickings, said Captain Andy Jackson of the Roanoke Rapids Police Department.
“Every year we have an increase in activity,” Jackson said today. “It’s easy pickings. Criminals see people leaving GPS systems and electronics are really hot items. They’re easy pickings because people leave them in plain sight.”
Black Friday, especially, means bargains and in tight economic times, people will be crowding stores. “We expect to see large numbers of people showing up looking for deals.”
The police department will be patrolling shopping centers on Friday, Jackson said. “There will be a heavy presence in some of the shopping centers. Citizens on Patrol will hit the parking lots looking for suspicious activity. The advantage to having them is they’re an extra set of eyes and ears.”
Safeguards
The first rule Jackson offers is do not leave purses or wallets inside the car and do not leave packages visible.
“Be aware of your surroundings,” the captain said. “Look around your car. If you feel uncomfortable, turn around and return to the store. Most stores don’t mind escorting customers to the parking lot.”
Jackson advises limit the number of credit cards you carry and keep a list of them at home.
It is probably better to use a credit card than a debit card because it takes longer to recover money from unauthorized use of a debit card than it does from a credit card. “Unauthorized use of a debit card can drain your back account.”
Shopping away from home
If you shop at a large city mall and you pack gifts in the trunk and then return for more shopping, move your car to another location and then return. “Don’t go right back in,” Jackson says.
While shopping
Don’t leave pocketbooks and purses in carts unattended and turn your back. “Quite often, people will put their pocketbooks in the child seat and turn around and their pocketbook is gone,” Jackson said.
That goes for hot selling items, the captain said. “Keep an eye on your cart or you may lose your items before paying for them.”
