Counterfeiting, thefts from vehicles on the rise in Cedar Rapids

CEDAR RAPIDS — Cases of counterfeiting and forgery are on the rise in Cedar Rapids this year.

And a public safety official said other common crimes could be fueling that surge.

Cedar Rapids public safety spokesman Greg Buelow said Cedar Rapids police officers have responded to 306 reports of counterfeiting or forgery through the first half of November this year, compared to 171 during the same time frame in 2015. So far this year, police have also taken 818 burglary reports and 304 thefts from vehicle. At this point in 2015, burglary and theft from vehicle reports hit 824 and 272, respectively.

Source: CRPD 

Buelow said those three crimes can go hand-in-hand.

'While counterfeit currency has been a concern this year, police have also seen checks stolen from burglaries and from automobiles,' he said. 'This is one of the likely contributors to the increase in counterfeiting and forgery.'

Fortunately, these crimes are largely preventable, Buelow said.

'The risk of being burglarized is greatly reduced by making your home more difficult to enter and less enticing to would-be burglars,' he said.

Buelow said homes with ample exterior lighting, lights on timers inside the home and trimmed back trees and shrubs carry less of a risk of a break-in. Deadbolts on exterior doors and additional locks on windows and patio doors can also serve as deterrents.

Police also ask that the public report any suspicious activity in their neighborhood, including vehicle descriptions and any other details.

'Even if the information seems vague, investigators may be able to recognize potential suspects from even singular descriptions as they analyze patterns from details gathered at burglaries,' Buelow said.

As for vehicle burglaries, most of those are crimes of opportunity and can be prevented simply by keeping vehicles locked and valuables out of view, Buelow said.