5 ways to protect yourself from mail theft

WATCH ABOVE: Concern is being raised about an increase in one type of property crime. Vinesh Pratap explains.

EDMONTON — Edmonton police say they are seeing an increase in the number of community mailboxes being targeted and pried open by thieves.

“We’ve noticed a trend, I guess, in the targeting of mailboxes, especially in the front lobby of condominium and apartment buildings,” said Cst. Dexx Williams with the Edmonton Police Service.

Williams says the number of cases of mail theft steadily increased throughout 2014 and just hit the highest levels police have seen in recent history. Cases are being reported across the city, but half of the calls come from central Edmonton, Williams said.

“We’ve noticed that property crime in general is typically a low-hanging fruit, so a lot of our typical bad guys just see this as another opportunity to access easy money as opposed to breaking into vehicles.”

Edmonton resident Jim Wood has lived in his apartment for about three years and says 40 mailboxes in his building have been broken into twice in the past week alone.

“It’s a violation of a person’s privacy,” he said.

Wood says the building itself is secure, but believes there is more residents can do to help stop thieves from taking advantage of them.

“This is a situation where more awareness has to be made throughout the building,” he said. “It’s up to the individuals living in the building to realize what damage could be done to themselves personally in regards to mail being taken.”

READ MORE: Edmonton mailboxes broken into, identities stolen

Williams says building managers can help deter thieves by moving mailboxes out of sight of the main door or even to another floor. Buildings with surveillance cameras are also less likely to become targets, he added.

“The biggest thing that people can do for their buildings in general is essentially to just not let people in that they don’t recognize,” Williams added. “And if they see suspicious activity, report it to police promptly.”

Canada Post recommends the following five tips for minimizing mail theft:

• Pick up your mail as soon as possible after it has been delivered
• If you’re planning a holiday, have someone pick up your mail daily, or put your mail service on hold
• If you receive mail that is not yours either write “delivered to wrong address” or “not at this address” on the envelope and mail the item
• If you see suspicious activity, call the police
• If you see an overturned or vandalized mailbox, contact Canada Post at 1-800-267-1177

Williams says mail theft is most likely to occur in the overnight hours, between midnight and 6 a.m., when there is less foot traffic. For more information on how to protect your building from strangers, visit the Edmonton Police Service’s website.

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