Ten car thefts were reported in East Hills and Old Westbury from last Friday to Monday, according to the Nassau County Police Department.
On Friday evening into Saturday morning, four cars were reported stolen in East Hills from homes located on Poplar Drive, Sycamore Drive and Mimosa Drive, according to Detective Vinny Garcia of the county police.
One of the vehicles was found in the 111th Precinct of the New York Police Department in Bayside, Queens, with three people inside, all of whom were arrested. Two of the other cars were later found by the NYPD and returned to their owners.
On Saturday evening into Sunday morning, three autos were stolen from the same driveway on The Pines in Old Westbury, according to Garcia. The next night, three more cars were stolen, one on Westwood Circle, one on Great Oaks Road and the last on Edgewood Lane, all in East Hills.
Garcia said there was little broken glass at the sites of theft and there were “no signs of forced entry” into most of the cars, and he advised that residents take precautions.
“Lock your car doors, don’t leave anything valuable inside, but on top of that, don’t leave the fobs in the vehicles; that makes it ridiculously easier to steal the car,” Garcia said.
East Hills Mayor Michael Koblenz wrote in an email to residents on Tuesday that “in almost every situation, the cars were unlocked and keys were left in the automobiles.”
“We continue to ask all residents to please lock your cars when they are parked outside and remove the keys, and key fobs, from your vehicles,” Koblenz wrote.
He said that the Village of East Hills was “working closely” with the Nassau County police.
