Lakewood Civic

One of our Baytown PD detectives asked me to pass this along to all my neighborhood watch groups in hopes of keeping anyone from becoming a victim of this scam.

The detective is working a case along with a Secret Service Agent from the Dallas area. The Secret Service Agent advised they are beginning to see an upswing in “auto-dialer scams” in Texas with very heavy activity in the Dallas area.

What is an auto-dialer scam? I will explain. Your phone rings, when you answer it is an automated phone/computer system talking to you rather than a real person. The call will ask you to verify your banking or credit card information. Some of these calls are very clever and tricky.

The rule to remember is IF YOU DO NOT INITIATE THE PHONE CALL AS TO BE 100% CERTAIN WHO YOU ARE TALKING TO, DO NOT GIVE OUT ANY PERSONAL INFORMATION. Simply hang up the phone and call your bank or credit card company to verify they were trying to reach you.

These scams are becoming more elaborate and the crooks are good at what they do. However, you are in control of you info. Don’t be fooled in giving it out over the phone.

If you have any questions feel free to contact me.

Thanks,

Stewart Beasley

Crime Prevention Officer

Baytown Police Department

Thanksgiving and Christmas are quickly approaching. With this time of year comes busier than normal schedules, unexpected stops, and other obstacles that alter our every-day routines. We are all creatures of habit. When we deviate from those normal routines we sometimes overlook safety precautions we would have typically done. So, as we start counting days ‘til Christmas keep a few things in mind;

• Would-be thieves and burglars are being extra vigilant for people who are not paying attention. Watch your surroundings.
• Do not leave things of value in your car.
• Thieves have already been seen in the Houston area following the UPS and FedEx trucks. Leaving packages on your front door is not a good idea.
• Report suspicious vehicles and persons to the police.
• Make sure door-to-door solicitors have a permit from the city. If they don’t, call the police. Many times these are burglars.
• Remember to lock your doors and windows at your home.

Your neighborhood continues to be relatively quiet. I have said this many times, there is a direct correlation between crime rate in an area and the number of suspicious persons/vehicle calls… the more the police are called to investigate suspicious activity, the lower the crime rate. Please continue to be diligent in your reporting things that you deem suspicious.

Stewart Beasley

Subject: skimming devices

Hey guys. Pasadena and Nassau Bay PD are investigating skimming devices on ATM machines. Which means they are probably in Baytown too. Please pass along the info below to your groups. Below is info along with pictures of the device and people Pasadena would like to identify. You can pass that info along as well. Thanks for your help.

I often warn of “skimming devices” when I speak to groups. Skimmers are simply a device that reads and stores your credit card or debit card information. That info can then be downloaded onto blank card. At this point your card has been “cloned”. Your real card is still in your possession and will work. However, the clone card will also work and money will come from your account.

Pasadena PD and Nassau Bay PD both discovered a skimming device on ATM machines in their cities. The pictures attached are of the skimming device which also included a camera. The camera allowed the bad guys to video the PIN number associated with the card. They would also like to identify the persons pictured.

When using your cards for purchases:

• Look closely at the card reader at each location you use your card
• If something looks suspicious or tampered with, as in coloring, added hardware, entry made into sealed container, don’t use the machine and call the police
• Reconcile your accounts regularly. Remember your card will still work as long as you have money. You may not even know bad guys are using your card until you are declined.

If you have any questions feel free to contact me.

Stewart Beasley

Crime Prevention Officer

Baytown Police Department

Incident Summary

          Pasadena PD is investigating a skimming device and spy camera that was installed onto an ATM inside a Valero located at 6335 Spencer Hwy. They are attempting to identity the two individuals in the above photo, who appeared to have installed the device. If you can identify these subjects please contact Detective Reyes.

Pasadena Police Department

Detective Mauricio Reyes

Sunday, June 21st, the LaPorte police caught a Burglar who had been operating in the City of La Porte for 2 days. His M.O. is to knock on the door of his target residence and if no one answers, he forces the door, either with a pry bar or by kicking the door in. We have recovered some property in the cases, but we still have some property not yet recovered. In addition, we have a vast amount of recovered property not believed to be related to La Porte cases, this property includes handguns, jewelry, etc. We also have a large amount of pawn slips, from pawn shops all over the surrounding Houston area and even a pawn shop in Buda Texas. There are several different names on the pawn slips.

Lessons to take away from this info:

1. Day time burglars are going to knock on your door. This has been their modus operandi forever and continues to be effective. If someone comes to your door uninvited and without the proper solicitation paperwork call the police.

2. If you are a victim of a crime, report it to the police. We catch bad guys regularly who are in possession of items that do not belong to them yet we have no victim to return them to.

3. Write down serial numbers for items and take pictures of jewelry. Serial numbers are not usually on the paperwork or the receipt from the purchase. The only thing that identifies your laptop, gun, or whatever, from anyone else’s is the serial number. Write it down and keep it in a safe place.

4. Pay attention to what is going on in your neighborhood. Burglars know people are away on vacations, baseball tourneys, and many other things. Report suspicious behavior and persons to the police.

Stewart Beasley

Crime Prevention Officer

Baytown Police Department

We have been seeing this trend around the Houston area for a while now and apparently it has made its way to Baytown. Below is an email we received from Chambers County Sherriff’s Department. Please pass it along to your groups.

It appears the juggers have moved up to Baytown/Chambers County. Our victim reportedly took out $600 from the ATM at Chase Bank on Garth Road and drove straight to Walmart on SH 146/10. When she returned from inside the store, her passenger side window was smashed. The only thing missing was the cash envelope. Video surveillance shows a black passenger car (possibly a new Ford Fusion) pulling up to her vehicle. A black male, wearing a black hoodie, is observed approaching her passenger side window. A few seconds later, he gets back in his car and the suspects leave.

From what I am being told about juggers, their MO is to rent vehicles, super tint the windows, and remove/change the plates. They lie and wait near banks and follow the victims’ home or their next location. They are either jumping out to rob the victims or just waiting to burglarize the vehicles.

Pay attention to what vehicles and who is around you at your banking institutions. Check your mirrors to make sure you are not being followed from the bank. DO NOT LEAVE THINGS OF VALUE IN YOUR VEHICLE. If you suspect you are being watched or followed call the police.

Alert from Baytown police detectives:

BOLO (Be On Look Out) for black males with “foreign” accents on foot in higher-end neighborhoods who walk up to doors and knock, then make odd requests and leave. Also BOLO for black males of foreign descent in rental cars in higher-end neighborhoods… especially if the complainant is of Indian/Pakistani/Asian descent.

A seemingly large ring of BLACK COLOMBIAN MALES working in the Houston area. They use rental cars to stake out residences, then hit right after the victim leaves by breaking glass on the back door. They also often send people to knock on doors to check if they’re home.

This particular ring seems to choose victims of Indian and Middle Eastern decent because they know a large percentage of them often keep large amounts of cash and jewelry in their homes. However, not all victims have been foreign.

Recently, the news also highlighted a ring of burglars targeting the Heights and other high-end neighborhoods in Houston. The burglars are driving BMW’s and Mercedes in order to blend in.

Bad guys have to change their game from time to time but the rules remain the same… pay attention to people, vehicles, and behavior that looks suspicious in your neighborhood and call the police when you see something questionable. People knocking on your door without a permit should always be called in to the police.

Stewart Beasley

Crime Prevention Officer

Baytown Police Department

Click here for the Lakewood Neighborhood Night Out sign up form for Tuesday, October 1, 2013

NNO sign up2013

There will be a Lakewood Neighborhood Watch meeting Thursday, April 12th at 6:30 at the Lakewood Church of Christ to discuss crime prevention. Guest will include representatives of the Baytown Police. Lakewood neighbors are invited. The Lakewood Church of Christ is at 7701 Bayway Dr. (Corner of Bayway and Honeysuckle). The meeting is planned for 1 hour.