Christmas reminder: Don’t leave valuables in your car — here’s why

PUBLIC SAFETY REMINDER: Christmas shoppers who might be moving faster than usual should remember not to leave valuables in their cars, as a Ridgewood woman who parked outside the Wyckoff YMCA discovered when her purse was stolen earlier today, police say.

Photo Credit: *Cliffview Pilot File Photo*

Jerry DeMarco

12/12/2013 8:43 p.m.

She’d parked “for about one hour with her purse visible inside,” Wyckoff Police Chief Benjamin Fox said. “The window of the car was smashed out and the purse containing cash and credit cards was stolen.”

It was the second time that’s happened in the YMCA lot in two weeks, the chief added.

Similar incidents are being reported elsewhere. In Rochelle Park, a supermarket cashier lost the contents of her pocketbook after a thief swiped her car keys from next to the register (SEE: Police: ‘Price Plus’ card, Philly Eagles sweatshirt lead to Rochelle Park car burglar).

If you absolutely must keep valuables in your vehicle, Fox said, lock them in the trunk – and then lock the vehicle.

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