Broome County Sheriff’s Office urges residents to be aware of ‘Porch Pirates’ this holiday season

BINGHAMTON (WBNG) -- Detective for the Broome County Sheriff’s Office Matthew Barcak said during the holiday season, there or more packages being delivered to homes. Which is why they are urging people to be aware of porch pirates.

He said during the holiday season they receive increased reports of packages getting stolen from resident’s porches, due to thieves assuming those packages will contain more valuable things. Barcak said to make sure you take more safety measures when having packages delivered

“One is installed doorbell cameras,” said Barcak “Any sort of camera system that can cover your porch can help at least identify people who may steal things and also deter them from even coming on your porch.”

He said downloading delivery tracking apps also helps.

“The safest things you can do is through those apps when you order something have it sent to a secure location,” said Barcak “Amazon and a bunch of other companies have places in our area that are convenient to for all neighborhoods to have packages delivered there. If you have something expensive that’s coming and you are available to sign for it, set up a signature request if it can’t be delivered to a secure facility.”

Barcak said if you see something say something suspicious in your neighborhood, make sure you call your local authorities.

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