North, south, east and west — the village’s recent spat of car burglaries have been everywhere. That has made it difficult for police to pinpoint at-risk areas in Morton.
However, following the arrest of three individuals, Morton police think they have suspects in up to 17 car burglaries in town.
Police arrested Christopher Armstrong of 317 E. Monroe Aug. 3, Nicholas Majewski of East Peoria June 27, and Larry Finkel of 309 N. First June 26. The three are known to have been involved in at least eight car burglaries, but possibly more.
“We have information that eight of them are probably related,” Morton Police Department Sgt. Detective Jason Miller said. “Nine others happened about the same time ... so possibly 17 car burglaries.”
It is only a fraction of the number of reported car burglaries in the past three months. Police received 62 calls since Jan. 1 and made 44 reports through July 31.
June was the busiest month, seeing 36 calls and 27 reports regarding vehicle burglaries. The spike started in May when seven reports were made. Reported car burglaries have accounted for 6 percent of the reported crimes in Morton since Jan. 1. It is the second most common reported crime following criminal damage to property.
Some property has been recovered, and in one particular case, Armstrong has been charged with possession of stolen property.
Though car burglaries have increased throughout Central Illinois, police say Morton is a prime target for the would-be thieves. Higher-income neighborhoods are more prone to car shopping.
Car shopping is the process in which burglars check car door handles to see if they are locked. If locked, they move on. If unlocked, typically anything of value, including loose change, is stolen.
The problem, however, has continued in Morton for years. And, it has prompted numerous warnings from police and more recently from Morton Mayor Norm Durflinger who included a warning in his state-of-the-village speech.
Morton police have expressed frustration over the matter in the past. Residents continue to leave their car doors unlocked. Police maintain that there is a simple solution to this problem — locking doors and garages.
“Although we can attribute a lot of the vehicle burglaries to these individuals, residents should still be mindful of keeping vehicles and garages locked,” Deputy Chief Craig Hilliard said.
