Van Nuys : Meeting Offers Tips for Fighting Crime

‘Tis the season to be wary.

Tips to avoid crime during the holidays will be delivered to merchants and consumers who attend the Van Nuys/Sepulveda Boulevard Business Watch meeting tonight.

Beginning at 6:30 p.m., the free, one-hour meeting at Economy Office Furniture, 6300 Van Nuys Blvd. in Van Nuys, will feature officers from the Los Angeles Police Department’s Van Nuys Division.

“The holiday season is the season for crime to get worse,” said Flip Smith, president of Sepulveda Boulevard Business Watch.

Smith should know. He had his own car phone stolen a few weeks ago. During the three hours it took him to realize it was missing, the thieves made 27 calls, including four to Acapulco.

In addition to preventing burglaries of cars, officers will give tips to shoppers on where to park, when to use automated teller machines, when to lock cars and homes and even when to put the presents under the tree.

Merchants will be warned about credit card fraud, dealing with aggressive panhandlers and closing their stores for the holidays. Police say it is important to educate the public because crime may increase during the holidays, but extra money for police protection does not.

“We’re not going to have the extra time to do extra patrols,” said Van Nuys Officer Joe Losorelli. “We’re basically telling people to watch out for each other and watch out for yourself.”