WESTERN BUREAU – After a recent spate of break-ins in Granville, St James, the community police say they will step up security in the area over the next couple of weeks.

The cops said that there has been an increase in the number of reported household break-ins inside areas like Pitfour, Fairfield and Retirement in the community over the last three weeks. Thousands of dollars in household items, including television sets, VCRs and DVD players, in addition to money, have been stolen, lawmen said.

In one incident, a fireman stationed to the Montego Bay Fire Brigade had his house cleaned-out by the thieves. Not only did they steal a range of appliances and cash, they also emptied the firefighter’s refrigerator, leaving empty drink containers behind.

Investigators said they received, on average, two reports of break-ins per week while others go unreported for no clear-cut reason. But despite the upsurge, the cops said they have a reasonable success rate in apprehending the criminals and having the stolen items returned to the victims. They intend to improve on that record over the next few weeks by, among other things, increasing patrols in the community. As a precautionary measure in case of theft, they have urged residents to record the serial numbers on their property, as this would help in tracking and returning their property.