Oxford Sees A Continued Rise In Break-Ins Over The Holiday Season

The danger comes when it’s dark in Oxford, Mississippi for local thieves, particularly during the holiday seasons.

November, December and March are the biggest months for break-ins in Oxford due to the mass population of students who leave town for the holidays, while also leaving their houses open and unattended. The Oxford Police Department has been working to limit these break-ins as much as possible, almost doubling their task forces during these times and by giving the community whatever advice they can to avoid theft in their homes and cars.

The Oxford Police Department employs the community to keep their valuables secure by parking in well-lit areas and making sure to lock their doors whenever they go places at night. During the holiday shopping season, there tends to be an increase in these break-ins, and any open car could be a target. Oxford Police Department officer, Blake Horden, said the police do what they can to keep both cars and homes safe during the university’s holiday breaks.

“We beef up a lot of extra patrols,” Horden said. “We team up with our investigators, some of the other supervisors, and then reports we have had in the past in neighborhoods. We will hit those up and ride them constantly, all night long.”

Many local homeowners and renters are unaware of the break-ins that have been occurring for the past few years and haven’t been very careful about keeping their homes safe from theft. Ole Miss student and renter, Maddie Emery, is one of many renters that doesn’t feel like she has been paying attention to the possibilities of burglary in Oxford and is working with her roommates to better keep their home safe.

“We haven’t been very careful,” Emery said. “We usually leave our key under the mat, and we usually leave the door open; but now after hearing all this, we’re probably going to be a little more careful.”

OPD informs local homeowners and renters there is much that can be done to further protect your homes during the holiday season, including not leaving out spare keys underneath doormats or plants.

These thieves can easily figure out these classic habits and may even be watching your everyday habits to see where you put your keys. They have also noticed a large sign of thieves putting doormats up against the doors. By doing this, they are checking to see whether the homeowners will move it in a few days, checking if they are actually coming home anytime soon. It also helps to keep your blinds closed to avoid anyone looking in at your belongings, not leaving out boxes or expensive items in your house, and leaving a light or the television on to make it seem like there may be someone there.

By Megan Myers. mlmyers1@go.olemiss.edu

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