Thief Breaks Into Over 20 Cars in Rockland

by Reuvain Borchardt – Hamodia

A thief broke windows or opened doors of more than 20 cars in Rockland County on Friday night to steal items, the latest in a rash of Shabbos car break-ins in the area.

Yossi Margaretten, coordinator of Rockland Chaveirim, tells Hamodia that his organization has 12 patrol cars of non-Jews patrolling in Rockland County on Shabbos, but “we can’t keep up” with the car-break ins, which typically occur on Shabbos, and that he will be adding more cars next Shabbos.

The thieves typically try car doors to see if they are unlocked, then look for items to steal. Even if the door is locked, if there are valuables visible, they’ll break the window to steal it. Margaretten says these break-ins typically spike before the holidays.

Last Friday night, a single thief broke the glass or opened an unlocked door of more than 20 vehicles, stealing cash, cellphones and a gps device. Margaretten says these incidents just resumed two weeks ago after a lull of several months, and that after viewing surveillance footage from last Friday night, he believes that perpetrator may be a man who was previously arrested for “a lot of past incidents.”

Rockland Chaveirim is reminding residents to lock their car doors and never leave valuables in a car, particularly in plain view.