UNIVERSITY CIRCLE, Ohio — In University Circle, Police Chief Tom Wetzel said he and his officers have a growing problem on their hands when it comes to car break-ins.
“There’s no question we're seeing some kind of change lately,” said Wetzel.
Covering a square radius of about 1.2 miles, Wetzel said it’s extremely unusual for his department to have received more than 60 reports for crimes involving vehicle theft, breaking and entering and criminal damaging of cars in the last month.
“Just since Aug. 1, we've had 43 crimes involving vehicles, and over the Labor Day weekend, we had 21 calls of cars that were broken into,” said Wetzel.
What Wetzel said is even more troubling is the ages of those thieves his officers have caught.
“They were 10, 11 and 11 and think about that for a minute. Those are children, and if they would have got in those cars and drove away, could you imagine?” he asked.
Wetzel said charges are currently pending through the Juvenile Court System for those individuals involved.
Meanwhile, he’s urging those working, living and even visiting University Circle to pay attention to their surroundings because he’s finding these crimes are easy to commit.
“They’re looking for opportunities, and when they do, which they do at different times of the day. It’s not always at night in the dark; it's in broad daylight,” said Wetzel.
As Wetzel and officers like Joe Fazio continue tackling this problem, the department is already looking at how different crime intervention programs can help prevent young kids from getting involved in these dangerous situations.
“Just to see that positive mindset where they can get out of the streets, they can do better,” said Fazio.
Targeting Cleveland-area kids between the ages of 7 and 12, Fazio is involved with University Circle Police’s “Cop Scout Program,” where he and other officers are building trust with the community and being a positive role model for kids to not turn to crime, thanks to funding from the Art Treauhaft Foundation.
“We have a tendency to run into these kids, you know, that are stealing cars, not to say that that's these kids and these babies. But, you know, there's that potential out there where if they don't have a positive program to go to or a good family support system, then, you know, that creates opportunity where they create their own family out on the street,” said Fazio.
If you are interested in learning more about University Circle’s Cop Scout program, you can contact their police dispatch at 216-791-1234, or you can email Officer Fazio at joe.fazio@universitycircle.org.
