POLICE patrols are being stepped up after several reports of high-performance cars being stolen in two-in-one burglaries across Barnsley.
Two-in-one burglaries involve suspects breaking into a property for the sole purpose of taking car keys. They typically occur at properties with high value or rare vehicles on the drive and Barnsley has seen a spike in this type of burglary in recent months.
DCI Paul Murphy, Barnsley crime manager, said: “The criminals are targeting houses with high-end or high-performance cars outside.
“The vehicle is what’s of value but to get the full value they need the keys to the car.
“A lot of the vehicles that are stolen are sold on or used for parts but we do recover a high amount of the stolen cars.
“Our approach to tackling burglary is putting the victim first.
“Burglary is one of the crimes that has the biggest impact on victims, it’s intrusive and scary. But we have dedicated people and patrols dedicated to two-in-one burglaries and we are trying to reduce the chances of this happening in the future.”
The burglaries are more common in rural communities, especially on the outskirts of the borough.
In these places, high-value cars are left on show and there is little-to-no CCTV to record the crime.
“South Yorkshire Police take this problem very seriously. At this moment we have a number of additional resources that are patrolling the affected areas,” said DCI Murphy.
“We have a dedicated team of patrolling officers that are on duty during the day and at night and detectives investigating the offences that have happened to help make arrests.
“The police are making patrols to do absolutely everything they can to stop these crimes from happening and the public can help by following basic crime prevention strategies such as not leaving valuables on show and having a secure place to store keys.
“I want to reassure the people of Barnsley that catching burglars is our passion and we are doing absolutely everything we can to do this.
“Further arrests are already being made in regards to the offences.
“Barnsley is a very safe place and we are committed to keeping it that way.”
If you have any information or are concerns please contact the police on 101 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.
If you see a crime in progress dial 999.
