September, 2014. Auditorium Square Park in Ocean Grove. Paul Goldfinger photo ©
September 9, 2014
Neighbors – (Email forwarded to Blogfinger by Citizen Reporter William Heatley)
Be advised that our neighbor at xx Embury Ave. (# 100 block, year-round home) awoke about 3 am to find burglars standing in the kitchen. Police captured one, the other is still at large. The neighbor believes that the back door was locked but most likely it wasn’t closed securely.
Nevertheless, it would seem that these intruders were walking about trying doors.
Lock all doors and accessible windows. Also secure your vehicles.
Larry
I woke up to some noise at 4AM and the police had the dogs going through my bushes in the front and side yard. When I called the station that afternoon to ask who they were looking for and should I still be concerned, they told me that they had a report of someone on a porch in the neighborhood. They did not say “IN THE KITCHEN”. I wish they would tell us the truth when we call. Not OK in my book.
Update as of Sept 11: The number of perps are variously reported as one or two. The man in the kitchen was a Caucasian who entered by an unlocked rear door. The police used a dog to help apprehend the man. There was no violence. No information yet from NTPD about this crime.
We have requested more information from the NYPD, but, so far, no response. They tend not to say much during an active investigation.—PG
Maybe time to call Neptune and find out about break in communications. I thought reports were good to get.
Hi Paul, yes, I did a “neighborhood watch” search which showed a gap, and thought I might have missed something. Was interested if this break in was a trend or isolated incident. Agree on your suggestion for a more formal approach to neighborhood watching is needed. Thanks.
Mike: Those NW reports were being sent regularly until the last one which was in July for June. Reports are fine, but now that the season is over, what we really need are more eyes on the targets. Soon our neighborhoods will be even less populated and darker.
Our “neighborhood watch” is essentially defunct. We have no educational programs, few NW signs around town (which is a deterrent), poor communication, and no motivation to encourage citizens to participate. NW programs in other towns are much more aggressive. For some reason, the Neptune PD hasn’t shown much interest in bringing the NW program back to life.
So each neighborhood in town should form their own groups to watch each others backs and to keep all your eyes open. A leader should step up, and each group should form an email and phone list. Communication is important. The police say “If you see something, say something.” Blogfinger will post anything important that you send me having to do with preventing crime.
And Mike. On the top of the BF page is a search box. If you type in “neighborhood watch” you can see all that we have seen recently.
Here is a link that we posted over two years ago about the Neighborhood Watch program in the Grove:
http://blogfinger.net/2012/04/22/og-neighborhood-watch-what-is-it/
Neighborhood Watch is another possible project for the Home Owners Association. Isn’t public safety a fundamental goal of that group? Their web site says, “The mission of the Ocean Grove Home Owners Association is to enhance the quality of life in Ocean Grove.” What could be more important for that mission than preventing crime?
It is true that they have a lot to do such as touring those derelict houses, but with hundreds of members, probably more than 500, do the leaders ever canvas their group to see who might want to help fulfill their mission?
Has there been a recent Neighborhood Watch Report from the Neptune PD?