Could you provide one of our officers with the Make, Model, and Serial Number of your 55" TV if it were stolen from your home? How about a detailed description and perhaps a photo of your valuable jewelry? If you're like 66% of our theft victims during 2009 and 2010, the answer is probably "No" which is unfortunate because most stolen items are rarely recovered and most thieves are not brought to justice for that very reason.
I'm sure that the thought of conducting an inventory of your home or business to record this information seems daunting, but it is very important for the police and your insurance company to have this information available in the event your home is burglarized. We use the information to enter your stolen items in a national database and your insurance company uses it to assess replacement values.
Having said all of that, I want to direct your attention to a free online service that allows you to enter all of your valuable items, including photos, into a secure database for safe keeping. If you ever become victimized, you can log in and check off the items that were stolen and print them out for the police and your insurance company. This service is provided by Leads Online, an online system that works with police across the country to track and recover stolen property. The LeadsOnline system allows detectives to search for the items using a variety of parameters, including item descriptions and serial numbers. When an item is sold to a pawn or secondhand shop, the product information is entered in the LeadsOnline database and is immediately viewable by participating law enforcement agencies across the country.
Again, registration for this service is absolutely free and you can enter an unlimited number of personal property items. You can read more and register at http://reportit.leadsonline.com.
I highly encourage all of our citizens to take advantage of this service and take the time to record your valuable assets "just in case".
-Chief Perkins