FOR many families, the festive season is a time for celebration, but for thieves, it’s also the prime season for home burglaries.

According to police statistics, around 350 Canberra homes were robbed in the last summer holiday period, with empty and unprotected homes making easy targets.

Station sergeant Rod Anderson says taking a few simple steps this holidays will reduce the risk of burglaries.

“It’s all about making sure the house doesn’t look unattended – have sensor lights, draw curtains, get someone you know to grab the mail or even arrange for a neighbour to park their car in your driveway so it looks like someone is home,” Sgt Anderson says.

“There’s many break and enter cases we see where the point of entry is an unlocked window or something, so it’s important to make sure they are all secure,” he says.

“It may sound really simple, but if you make it as hard as possible for someone to get into your house, they’re more likely to move on. It’s about putting up deterrents.”

More information at police.act.gov.au/

… and breath tested

POLICE will “make no apologies” for breath testing anytime and anywhere this festive season, says station sergeant Rod Anderson.

Until February, police will target alcohol and drug impaired driving, with statistics showing that impaired driving, primarily due to the effects of alcohol, is a major contributing factor to serious and fatal crashes in the ACT.

In 2013, more than 100,000 random breath tests were conducted on ACT roads, with more than 1000 drivers returning a result over the limit.

“We know the seasonal change brings people out and we know they consume more alcohol, and we want to make sure everyone is kept safe, that we reduce road trauma and we remove any impaired drivers on the road,” says Sgt Anderson.

Police will also launch Operation Crossroads, a nationally co-ordinated traffic campaign, partnering with Monaro police, which aims to make making sure people are safe coming into and out of the ACT.

The operation, which runs from December 23 until January 3, will see extra police deployed on main roads and highways, targeting speeding, drink-driving, fatigue, seatbelts and driver distraction, with double demerit points in place from December 20 until January 1 inclusive.

Police will also focus on Kings Highway, where between December 2012 and January 2013, a total of nine crashes occurred, with over half of those crashes speed related.

“Last summer from December 2012 to January 2013, police issued 364 speeding tickets to reckless Kings Highway road users,” says Sgt Anderson.

“We want people to enjoy themselves this summer but to also drive safely and return back home.”

For more information visit police.act.gov.au/