There is no crime wave sweeping Williston Park.
Sgt. James Brown of the Nassau County Police Department 3rd Precinct gave that assurance to residents at Monday night’s Williston Park Village Board meeting.
“Crimes are down in Williston Park as opposed to last year,” Brown said.
Village of Williston Park Mayor Paul Ehrbar said concerns had been expressed at a recent meeting of the Chamber of Commerce of the Willistons about car break-ins in the area.
Brown said those incidents are part of countywide trend not specific to any specific locations within the county.
“The incidence of larcenies for autos is going through the roof,” Brown said.
The larcenies occur, he said, because people leave valuables such as GPS devices in their cars and leave the cars unlocked. Typically, he said the thefts are made by groups of younger people acting in twos or threes with one person as a lookout. They go down a particular street, checking for unlocked cars and take money and valuables from them.
“It’s a very easy crime. It’s very hard to catch up with,” Brown said.
Brown said residents should call 911 if they observe suspicious activity around cars in their neighborhoods and advised against yelling at prospective thieves to scare them off before police could arrive on the scene. He also advised residents to take the usual precautions to prevent the crimes.
“Lock your door on your car. Put your cars in your driveways,” he said.
Brown described the break-ins as a “crime of opportunity” with valuables and cash in the cars – not the cars themselves – as the thieves’ objective.
“Cars are very hard to steal,” he said.
Inspector Sean McCarthy, commander of the 3rd Precinct, confirmed that recent thefts of valuables were not indicative of any local crime pattern in the Willistons.
“They kind of run in streaks. Sometimes they’ll check several car doors at a time,” McCarthy said. “It’s not a crime wave, by any stretch of the imagination.”
The incidence of grand larceny in the 3rd Precinct has risen by 6.39 percent this year to 233 incidents from 219 incidents last year, according to police department statistics through March 11. The incidence of grand larcenies rose 17 percent in 2012 to 1,777 incidents, up from 1,005 incidents in 2012, according to statistics compiled by the 3rd Precinct. Grand larceny includes thefts of high-end valuables from cars, as well as fraud and identity theft.
In other developments:
• Ehrbar presented Patricia Mars, library assistant at the Williston Park Public Library, with a commendation for 20 years of service at the library.
“Time flies,” she said after accepting the commendation from the mayor.
• John Conway, a Life Scout from Boy Scout Troop 200, presented Ehrbar with a plaque engraved with the names of those who helped him complete his Eagle Scout community service project to refurbish the men’s shower stalls and bathroom at the village municipal pool.
Ehrbar said he initially had concerns about the scope of the project when Conway first presented his plans, but commended him for his work.
“You did a great job. It’s a credit to scouting and to you,” Ehrbar said.
• Village Building Inspector Kerry Collins reported 100 summonses were issued to residents who failed to remove their cars from the street after the snowstorm earlier this month.
“It didn’t even make a dent,” Collins said of the $150 summonses village code enforcers issued.
Residents are directed to remove their cars from village streets when a snowfall of two inches or more is anticipated to enable the village Department of Public Works to clear the streets.
