CRIME ALERT: OP sees spike in car burglaries

We’ve got a crime alert for Orange Park.

The Clay County Sheriff’s Office confirms there were seven car burglaries in the Tanglewood area off Blanding overnight Monday into Tuesday or early Tuesday. In all cases, the cars appear to have been unlocked and the thief or thieves took valuables from the glove box. In three cases, nothing was taken.

One of those victims is Robert Bland, who was actually already at work when his wife reached out to him.

“I was shocked when she called me and told me- she was scared to death and she didn’t know what to do,” Bland says.

Bland says they always keep the doors locked, despite the early findings from the Sheriff’s Office, and that’s not the only precaution.

“We try to keep everything out of our cars that we can, so they can’t take anything.”

Nonetheless he says the neighborhood- he lives off Bourdeaux Place and Gettysburg Drive- is uneasy.

“People are gunna have to start watching each other’s back,” he says.

For two months, he has been trying to start a neighborhood watch, and they have had one meeting so far. He says he will be stepping up those efforts now and encourages anyone interested to get involved.

He’s also taking security in to his own hands, installing a motion detecting surveillance camera on his property.

“If somebody comes on your property, it takes pictures and videos the whole time that they’re here,” he says.

The Sheriff’s Office is still processing our request for all the incident reports. We expect to have more information about this surge, and whether CCSO believes it could be part of a greater problem or is an isolated incident, through Herman Cain and Sean Hannity Wednesday.

If you're interested in being a part of Bland's neighborhood watch, you can contact him at rbpreacherbob3@gmail.com.