MIDLAND, Texas — Dough is dropping, lights are shining and shoppers are on a quest this holiday season. However, so are thieves and burglars.
One thing to keep an eye out for as your online shopping items arrive are the so-called "Porch Pirates."
In the last 12 months, $12 billion worth of packages were stolen, according to Security.org.
"You can always set it up so your neighbor knows you're having packages delivered. If they're home, they can come by, pick them up and hold on to them," said Chane Blandford, a Midland police crime investigation officer.
One additional tip includes reaching out to the designated facility and asking them to hold on to your package. That leaves picking the item up from the facility in your hands.
"Another thing you can do is you can set up boxes because if it's out of sight, it's out of mind," Officer Blandford said. "So if it is, if you could put a label on top of the box saying 'Please place packages in box' and a lot of carriers are going to see that and they know what they're combating so they're going to help out with that."
According to the Midland Police Department, it will be stepping up patrol this holiday season.
"You're going to see more patrol units cruising through the neighborhoods," Officer Blandford said. "We even have unmarked units cruising through the neighborhoods. You can't even tell if it's a cop or not [...] So please do me a favor. Lock your car doors, if you're the burglar. And you're doing this, it's only a matter of time before you get caught."
It is a Class C misdemeanor to burglarize a vehicle. Attempting to burglarize a vehicle is a Class B misdemeanor.
One way to protect your possessions inside your vehicle is to keep them out of sight. Place a blanket the color of your vehicle's interior over your belongings. And of course, lock your doors.
"If everybody in the city of Midland would lock their vehicles every night, our vehicle burglaries would drop by 90%," said Officer Blandford.