Neighborhood Watch Program encourages residents to work together

COLUMBIA, Mo (KMIZ)

In 2018, there were almost 550 burglaries in Columbia. Many of those are from burglars walking through unlocked doors, according to data from the Missouri Uniform Crime Reporting Program.

Columbia authorities said residents should keep any mail and packages from piling up, all doors locked, garage doors closed and ask neighbors to watch your place to prevent burglaries. 

“Anybody whether they're in their neighborhood watch, or not, needs to be more aware of what’s normal in their street, their block," said Columbia Neighborhood Watch crime and prevention coordinator Jason McClintic. “Anything that’s abnormal is a good indicator that they need to have another set of eyes come take a look and investigate further.”

McClintic said residents should call 911 when you see a crime being committed and 311, the non-emergency dispatch number, for any suspicious behavior or anything out of the ordinary in your neighborhood.

“If they see some stuff that’s expensive, they’re going to say that’s a target,” said Columbia Neighborhood Watch board secretary Jeff Hempstead. "It may not be what they want in the garage, but they’re going to say if they got that expensive stuff in the garage, we know it’s in the house.”

For more information and tips from the Neighborhood Watch Program visit.