Garage break and enters on the rise in Regina

A Regina woman is sounding the alarm after her home was broken into while she slept upstairs in her east Regina home.

Last Wednesday while fast asleep, thieves broke into her son’s truck, snatching the garage door opener and gaining access into her home.

They stole Opresnik’s purse, tools and numerous sets of keys before stealing the truck as well.

“At six o’clock in the morning when my son went to work, I’m up with him and he walked out of the garage and he’s looking up and down the street going ‘Did dad play a trick on me? Did he move it? Where’s my truck?'”

The truck was recovered the next day and thanks to social media, Opresnik said people have been dropping off items from her purse that were found littered on the side of the road.

“To me, who had lost so much, it clearly brought tears to my eyes because I was so overwhelmed with the caring of the neighbourhood,” she said.

Breaking into vehicles and stealing the garage door opener to gain access into garages and subsequently, homes, is a trend Regina police say is happening more frequently in recent years.

In fact, garage break and enters, in general, have increased significantly from last year. From January 1 to April 30, 2017, 133 garage break and enters occurred compared to 270 during the same time this year.

“We’re looking at a significant increase of break and enters,” Regina Police spokesperson, Elizabeth Popowich said. “There isn’t a single area that has more difficulty with that particular crime trend, they can happen anywhere.”

As a result, police are reminding residents to make sure all doors are locked and keys, including garage door openers, are hidden. Also, if you happen to see something suspicious – report it right away.

“If a motivated offender can very easily break into a garage or a house or an unlocked car then that’s more likely to be a target than something that is locked up tight, is well lit and has lots of activity for instance,” Popowich said.

Opresnik is sharing her story in the hope that it helps prevent even one break and enter from happening to someone else.

“Most of the stuff that was taken is replaceable,” Opresnik said. “When it gets taken from you that hurts, but when you think what if somebody did get up and hear them? What would have happened?”