Mount Vernon Plagued By Rash of Break-Ins

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The City of Mount Vernon has reported 13 total break-ins since May 18 — a number that the city’s Police Chief Calvin Burns says is continuing to rise. “On May 18, we had a single vehicle broken into,” Burns explained. “Then, a few nights later, 7 vehicles were broken into. That next weekend, we had 5 vehicle break-ins, and over the past weekend, we had a single break-in.” Burns said that in addition to these burglaries, a single vehicle was stolen, which police recovered the next day. The break-ins have spread throughout the city, first beginning south of the Montgomery County Courthouse on Sutton Street, then traveling to Highway 280, continuing to West McRae Drive on the northwestern side of the city, and onward to West McKinnon Street.

Residents of the city shared online that they have been frustrated with the wave of theft that has hit the area, and hope to see change in the future. One resident took to social media to send a message to the burglar who took two wallets from her vehicle. “If anyone sees or knows something, we only need the IDs that were in the wallet, we don’t care about the cash,” the victim wrote. “This is getting ridiculous. Multiple houses getting hit each night. Not just one or two, but five, six, seven…” another citizen stated.

An arrest has not currently been made on the crimes and Burns encourages citizens to take precautionary measures to avoid these break-ins. “We are working to put an end to these incidents,” he reassured. “The most important thing you can do to help stop these crimes is to lock your vehicles. Most of the vehicles that have been burglarized have been unlocked and easy for criminals to access. In fact, the vehicle which was stolen was not only unlocked, but also had the keys left in the ignition.” Burns also encourages the public to report any incidents that they may witness.