| Having trouble viewing this email? Click here |
JULY 2013
Welcome to the July edition of the south Cobb PENS dispatch. I write this on the heels of last night's first Precinct Two PENS meeting of the year. I am still in awe of the number of citizens who were present! Whereas I thought perhaps five to ten people would attend; we ended up with almost sixty in the meeting room. Thank you to everyone who made time in their schedule to hear the presentation by our Crimes Against Children's unit and the crime update by Captain Adcock. I enjoyed meeting many of the residents who have communicated with me via e-mail over the past year.
TOPIC OF THE MONTH: STRANGER DANGER AND YOUR INTUITION
Have you ever found yourself in the presence of a stranger and something about that person didn't feel right? Perhaps it was the way he shook your hand, stood too close or maybe held eye contact just a second too long. This uneasiness is nature's way of providing you a warning sign. Are you paying attention? You should be. Heeding these signs and quickly acting upon them can mean the difference between a brief, uncomfortable encounter and being the victim of a crime.
We've all heard to listen to your gut and to follow your instincts. These truly are pearls of wisdom. Your gut doesn't lie so keep an open mind to what it may be telling you.
Did you know the Boston Strangler had one less victim because the potential target sensed danger? The woman had a carpenter named Al in her home and although he was supposed to be in a different part of the house working on the home's addition, he addressed her from the basement, telling her the washing machine was broken. He stared at her intently and apparently wanted her to descend the stairs to check on the washer. She thought it odd because she hadn't used the washer that morning. Acting on her hunch, she made up an excuse why she would not go downstairs, shut the door and locked it. She lived, but a woman in the same town did not. It would be two years later before the Boston Stranger, Al Desalvo, would be arrested.
This case is a sensational example of acting on one's suspicion, but it makes clear the gift of fear, which happens to be the title of an insightful book by Gavin De Becker from which some of the following tips were selected. See if you have ever encountered any of the following personalities:
- THE CHARMER Is the person overly charming? One of the most common characteristics of a skilled predator is their charm. Because chivalry amongst many younger men these days is rare, women can be wooed by a man offering his assistance. He may seem all the sweeter if he throws in a compliment about your hair, eyes, etc. If a charmer senses your distrust, he will talk and continue to talk to put your at ease. As he rambles, be alert for details that are not in context to your situation because this is a tactic to make you forget you're talking to a total stranger. As they say in sales, he's baffling you with bull*&!@. Think of the word "charm" as a verb instead of an adjective as in, "This person is trying to charm me" as opposed to, "This person is charming." Of course, your next thought should be, "Why is he trying to charm me?"
- THE HELPFUL STRANGER If approached by a stranger who offers to help you, say, carry your groceries into your vehicle or home, ask yourself why he is suggesting to assist when you didn't ask for help. Same goes for the handyman, gardener, roofer, etc. who suddenly appears in your yard as you are working on your lawn. In the latter example, the person may simply be a hard working soul pounding the pavement to increase his business, but he could also be a potential burglar or worse. Be aware if he's alone or with associates and be wary if he tries to guide you to a different part of your yard.
- THE TYPECASTER This tactic is a clever psychological ploy to get a person, usually a woman, to ignore their instinct to not engage the person in conversation. The man will say something that assesses the woman in a somewhat critical light in the hopes she will feel compelled to disprove the perceived opinion he has of her. An example would be if the man says, "I know a rich lady like you wouldn't want to talk to a guy like me." In this case he's working on class guilt and the result is the woman stays put and talks to the guy to prove to him she's not a snob.
- THE LOAN SHARK You can only fall prey to this strategy if you've allowed yourself to be assisted by the friendly stranger. If you have accepted their "kindness" to fix a flat tire; they've relinquished their seat on the bus or even allowed you to move in front of them in line at Publix, watch out for the payback, cause it's coming. Nothing comes for free with the loan shark and in his mind, you now "owe" him. The payback may be your phone number or perhaps a ride somewhere, all of which leads to the same goal - they want to be alone with you.
Particularly for women, there is an innate desire not to appear rude, so we often accept help before considering the consequences. This is what can lead us to trouble. If your intuition tells you something is amiss and you don't want a person's help, simply look at him directly (no need to smile) and say, "I don't want your help." This is much more firm than a simple, "No thanks." If he persists, say in a raised voice, "I said NO!" This is the point where the pleasant demeanor can suddenly turn sour. Once he realizes you're not going to fall for his scheme, he may get nasty and even curse at you as he walks away. This abrupt behavioral change serves as validation of his true nature and confirmation that your gut was right.
Although the tips outlined here are meant to keep you alert and safe, I certainly don't intend for you to go through life looking for rapists and robbers behind every tree or around each corner. If you're constantly worrying about what could happen then you'll be blurred to what actually is happening and grounded in reality is where we want you to be. Don't focus on fear lest it will freeze your rational thought. Fortunately, there are many more good people in this world than bad.
NOTABLE INCIDENTS:
In late May, A Zone Two officer was on patrol when he noticed an enclosed trailer parked at the rear of a shopping center. No one was with the trailer. The officer took a close look. He noticed that the tag returns stated the trailer was home-made, but it clearly was not a home-made trailer. Among other oddities, the officer noted there was no VIN plate on the trailer. As well, he observed the trailer had a sloppy paint job and he could see parts where the paint was chipped that revealed a metallic gray color. The underside of the trailer was very clean and glossy, which indicated it was a newer model. He noted the registered owner's name, but due to the late hour and it being on private property, chose not to contact the owner at the time.
The next day, the officer decided to go to the home of the registered owner. There, he found an SUV parked in front of the home that had the latter part of its VIN covered up. The tag to the SUV returned to a woman with the same last name as the trailer owner (to the home where the SUV was parked). The officer noticed that although the tag listed the SUV as a 1996 vehicle, the wheels had the emblem of a totally different vehicle. The head rest of the seats also bore the name of the other type of SUV. Even the steering wheel stated it was the other vehicle make.
The officer contacted Zone Two Auto Theft detectives, who had both the trailer and SUV towed to be inspected. The trailer was quickly determined to be stolen, but the SUV took much more work. To find the true identity of the SUV, the detectives utilized unique, time consuming techniques that make for a rather dirty day's work. Their efforts were worth it, as the SUV was also determined stolen, having been taken three years ago from north Georgia. Multiple auto theft related charges are pending against the suspect.
On the night of June 17, Precinct Two officers were dispatched to a church on Veteran's Memorial Highway in response to an alarm call. The initial information did not state what area of the church the alarm had activated. The two arriving officers began checking the outside of the church. One officer soon saw a male at the rear of the church beside the air conditioning units. Upon seeing the officer, the man fled on foot. The officers gave chase and after ignoring verbal commands to stop and then reaching into his pockets, the man was "tazed." The suspect was quickly taken into custody. Cut pieces of copper were found on the ground next to the air conditioning units. Zone Two detectives were notified and the man was brought to the precinct and interviewed by the property detectives. He admitted to being involved in the plot to steal copper, but said an accomplice was the person who was actually taking the copper; he was simply the lookout. Subsequent investigation revealed no evidence there was a second thief. The suspect was charged with Theft by Taking, Criminal Damage to Property, Possession of Tools, Obstruction and VGCSA. Incidentally, the alarm the officers responded to was on the air conditioning unit itself; it was installed after a previous theft of the air conditioner.
As always, if you have not already signed up to receive my monthly PENS updates, please do so at www.police.cobbcountyga.gov/pens This will take you to the Cobb Police PENS home page where you will see "signup page" as the third option on the left side of the home page. Just click to sign up. If you have any specific concerns, you may also contact us via e-mail at precinct2pens@cobbcounty.org
Stay cool and safe and we'll talk again in August!
Lieutenant Carole King
Precinct II Criminal Investigations Unit Commander
| ||||||||
No comments:
Post a Comment