(KUTV) –
How many packages are stolen during the holidays? An investigation by 2News found that parcel thefts almost doubled between November and December.
In the absence of a designated National Crime Information Center code for package theft, Utah law enforcement agencies are struggling to track this growing problem.
Some are trying to streamline classification to get cleaner data and further focus its enforcement.
Catch and chase pirates on the porch
“It’s getting worse every year,” says Sgt. Melody Cutler of the Greater Salt Lake Uniform Police Department. “We recently had a delivery driver who pointed out that he was being followed.”
Cutler explains that package theft is booming during the holidays, with criminals stealing packages from Utahns and reselling them for cash.
They know exactly what to do with them. We had people who just tear open the packages and leave the packaging in the front yard and just take the contents that they have.
Police told 2News Investigates that without cameras they have no idea who stole your order once it is out of the box. This makes it difficult to catch and prosecute veranda pirates.
“We have no way of proving that this is the one [items] that you ordered, “said Cutler.
Package theft double in December
Data from Unified, Provo City Police, and Sandy City Police show that in 2020, thefts in December were almost double what they were in November.
It is difficult to figure out the size and scope of the problem.
“There are ways to track other thefts. So if you were to say, ‘How many firearms did you steal,’ I can find out because when I do this police report, I am listing on property that it was a firearm, “Cutler said.
This is not the case with parcel theft.
Police told 2News Investigates that they use NCIC codes to classify each case, but the closest thing to “parcel theft” in the NCIC code is “theft from shipyards” or “theft from the post office”.
In order for us to be able to tell you specifically that it is a package, we should actually have to read these reports to see what was stolen, because it could have been your garden gnome, it could have been your bicycle, it could have been your Christmas party be lighting.
Without a clear code, the classification of parcel thefts can vary from officer to officer
Sgt. Clay Swensen of the Sandy Police Department said that being an administrative or filing department, it can sometimes be difficult to classify theft of parcels.
“It can vary from officer to officer, to be honest, one officer can classify a theft as a postal theft and another officer can classify it as a theft from a shipyard,” he said.
A specific package theft code would improve tracking, Swensen said. It would also give the police a clearer picture of the nature of thefts in Sandy and across the state.
Being able to track this would certainly help us identify areas that are problematic for us and pool our resources there, and even help inform citizens that this is happening in their neighborhood , and to make them aware of it so they can also help to prevent it.
Unified Police announced to 2News Investigates that based on this report they will be creating a new sub-category to track package theft in their department.
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