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Vulnerable targets
Salt Lake Navy housing residents say criminals
are taking advantage of families of the deployed
Some residents of Navy housing in Salt Lake say a spike in home and auto break-ins has left them feeling vulnerable to criminals taking advantage of the high number of deployed service members.
"They're targeting us because they know a lot of us are gone," said Halsey Terrace resident Lida Atkinson, whose husband, a Navy flier, is stationed in Afghanistan. "We're in a vulnerable state."
Her car and truck were recently broken into, but she said that's small compared with neighbors whose homes have been broken into at night.
Halsey Terrace and nearby Radford Terrace, with a total of about 800 homes, have seen a jump, with seven burglaries and six or seven car break-ins last month, said Tom Carter, vice president of military housing for Forest City Residential Management.
Since May the Navy has contracted the private company to manage the two communities, along with Moanalua Terrace, Hokulani Terrace and McGrew Point.
Carter shared police statistics for Halsey, Radford, Moanalua and Hokulani Terrace.
Burglaries were up to 10 in September, compared with none in August and three in July. Car break-ins hit 14 vs. three in August and four in July.
"All of a sudden, we're seeing a lot more nighttime burglaries, prowler type," said HPD Lt. Sherman Chan, of the District 5 burglary/theft section.
"People are going through unlocked doors, going in at night when folks are sleeping," Chan said.
Often the burglars steal purses left on kitchen counters, entering through sliding doors or jalousie windows.
Honolulu police took over in July from the military's base security as the primary responders to crime calls.
But Chan noted that a comparable civilian area, on the opposite side of Salt Lake Boulevard, has significantly more crimes overall -- 536 compared with 107 in the military housing area -- from July 21 to Sept. 21. Still, the military housing had 10 burglaries and 20 car break-ins, compared with nine and 17, respectively, in the civilian neighborhood.
Forest City provides private security patrols by Securitas Security Services USA for the five Navy communities. But Carter said residents have reported seeing some security officers in parked vehicles, sleeping or reading magazines.
Carter said the company is addressing those complaints, but he cannot confirm the reports. He promised to add another roving patrol to the two on duty "24/7" and will provide residents with a number to call security directly.
"The safety of our residents is our No. 1 thing," said Carter yesterday at a news conference. "We want to make sure they're safe and feel secure in the home."
Carter said the residents may have felt a "false sense of security" living in the military housing areas, which are not gated.
The management company also passed out fliers yesterday reassuring residents they are increasing security and advising them to secure their homes.
Forest Management and police plan to address residents concerns at 6 p.m. Thursday in a meeting at the Doris Miller/Catlin Park Community Center.
