Upscale Five Towns homes targeted in burglaries

Hewlett Harbor home burglarized on Feb. 20

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A home on Seawane Drive in the Village of Hewlett Harbor along with residences on the North Shore were the targets of what Nassau police said is a burglary pattern over the last three months that saw three people arrested in January as part of a Chilean crime ring.

Police were at the Hewlett Harbor home on Feb. 20 investigating the burglary. It was reported that the alleged thieves took a safe filled with jewelry and family heirlooms.

Hewlett Harbor Mayor Mark Weiss said that the village is working with Nassau police and its private security force to help ensure that residents are safe. He said that in two to three weeks license plate readers will be installed at specific locations in the village, a program Hewlett Harbor has been working on the past four months. The police will also enhance their patrols.

“We know that no home was burglarized when people were home,” Weiss said, noting the police said that residents should leave inside lights on facing the street and backyard to help mitigate the chances a home would be burglarized.

Homeowners should lock the door between the garage and the hours, and not leave the car fob in their vehicle. Weiss added that most of the burglaries occur at dusk, when the sun is setting and more than likely residents are out of the house, so the inside lights should be on a timer.

Similar upscale communities across Nassau County, including the Five Towns, fell victim to a car theft ring a few months ago. Weiss noted that several models of high-end vehicles have mirrors that retract when locked. That would indicate to a would-be thief that the car is locked.

“The people coming here from Chile are professionals, being brought in for a certain time, then they go back home, and tell others what to do, where to go,” Weiss said. “We have to become as smart as they are.” Similar crimes appear to be happening in Florida and California as well, police noted.

He said the village, which had a meeting with police in October, will discuss the problem at the trustee mmeting on March 12 at 7:30 p.m., Village Hall is at 449 Pepperidge Road in Hewlett Harbor.