Break-ins, more commonly known as burglaries, aren’t new to the Clovis Community. In fact, even through COVID-19 they still continued.
“When a business is closed it is considered a commercial burglary because [the person] is using force to get inside,” said Ty Wood, who serves as both a police service officer and the social media coordinator for the Clovis Police Department.
According to statistics from the analyst at Clovis Police Department there were a total of 124 commercial burglaries in 2019, 157 in 2020, and 72 in the first half of 2021.
“We haven’t seen a big change,” said Sgt. Jim Koch (pronounced as cook) with the Clovis Police Department.
Clovis as a community is home to many small businesses, and as if COVID-19 wasn’t stressful enough these crimes were continuing just as they were before the outbreak.
As the threat remains the same, it is important to know what to do if you ever witness something that looks like a commercial burglary, whether it be during the day or the night.
“If you see something suspicious, it probably is,” said Sgt. Koch.
Trust your gut. Call 911 or the non-emergency number, (559) 324-2800, immediately and try to take a picture of a license plate if there is a car present, or if you’re in a safe location, a picture of the burglar.
“Give the best information possible,” said Sgt. Koch, “but we recommend that they [the witness] don’t put themselves in harm’s way.”
There are many ways to try and protect a business from being broken into, such as alarms, metal bars, cameras, and even concrete bars to keep cars from crashing into the business.
There is a procedure for the Police Department once they get a call from a dispatcher or from the individual reporting the crime.
When it comes to an alarm system, the alarm company calls a dispatcher first.
“They [the alarm company] provide our dispatcher center with information regarding the location and type of alarm,” said Sgt. Koch.
For the businesses that do not have alarms and are broken into, it is less timely for the burglary.
“They [the business owner or employee] show up and see the front window is smashed out of their business, ” said Sgt. Koch, “at that point they call the Clovis Police Department.”
Police officers arrive at the scene of the crime, whether it was the night of or the day after the commercial burglary, do an investigation at the site and make sure no one is still inside the business at the time they get there.
As the mission statement addresses on the Clovis Police Department website, they strive to make the City of Clovis a safe place to live and work. It is composed of both “men and women who are committed to protecting the people, their property, and their rights.”
Being there for the community when small businesses face commercial burglaries is only one of the many ways they carry out this mission, ensuring safety and protection for the people of Clovis.