No Holiday For Crime

For real-life Grinches lurking in shopping mall parking lots and trolling neighborhoods, Christmas is a season for stealing -- even in Tucker. 

Assaults are down, car break-ins are up, according to Internet crime statistics compiled and analyzed by Patch. The statistics come from www.crimemapping.com, which collects data from police departments across the county. 

Between Dec. 1 and Dec. 13 there was an average of one car break-in per day within a two-mile radius of Tucker's Main Street. There were seven assaults reported during the same period in November and 14 during the same period in October.

Assaults, which ranked second in total crimes committed in November, were running in fifth place as of Dec. 13 -- behind vehicle break-ins, burglaries, thefts and larcenies, including shoplifting, and motor vehicle thefts.

"With Christmas coming, that is the trend in every city across the country," said DeKalb County police spokesman Jason Gagnon.

During this time of year, Gagnon said, the department typically shifts some of its focus to property-related crimes. That includes stepping up patrols in commercial areas, and setting up stakeouts for thieves looking for gift-filled cars.

"Unfortunately, because of furloughs, we are limited in what we can do this year," Gagnon said.