String of burglaries and thefts reported in Columbia
COLUMBIA, MO (KMIZ)
The Columbia Police Department is asking for the public’s help after multiple burglaries and thefts were reported this week.
On Tuesday, Columbia police posted a video of a man stealing a package Saturday in the 100 block of Blue Ridge Road. They also asked for help identifying someone who was allegedly involved in a theft on Sunday in the 800 block of East Broadway Street.
CPD posted another photo to Twitter on Wednesday of someone who is allegedly connected to a burglary that occurred in the 800 block of East Walnut on Tuesday.
One store owner told ABC 17 News she has been in Columbia for 16 years and hasn’t had much of a problem with thefts in the area until the past few years. Another store manager said shopping lifting picked up after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rally House in Columbia also said that they used to put out a sales rack on the sidewalk but had to stop because they were losing too much money in stolen merchandise.
This year, $165,988,394 in stolen property has been reported in Missouri, with $69,594,085 recovered. In Boone County, there has been $3,240,528 reported stolen in 2023 with $1,534,559 recovered.
Last year there was $557,127,944 worth of property stolen in Missouri with $215,014,524 recovered. Both figures are up from 2021, which saw $416,811,968 stolen and $131,379,424 recovered.
John Fields, the board president of Crime Stoppers, says the majority of these thefts can be avoided by locking your car and not posting your locations on social media
“Do not leave valuables in your car, Fields said.”Even if your car is locked if they see valuables in your car they are gonna break in there and take them. you know if you quit telling everyone where you are and making sure you lock your vehicle make sure you lock your house. don’t make yourself a target.”
The Columbia Police Department told ABC 17 News that these are ongoing investigations, so they could not provide any additional information at this time.
To provide an anonymous tip about any of these incidents call CrimeStoppers at 573-875-8477.
