Lock your car doors, close your garages - an effortless step to keep you and your property safe from thieves and bears

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE  MEDIA CONTACTS
Deputy Cocha Heyden
Public Information Officer/Social Media Coordinator, Douglas County Sheriff
Desk-303-814-7615 | Cell-303-435-4580
PIO line (media inquiries) 720-770-0178
PIO email (media inquiries) [email protected]
Social Media email  [email protected]

Jason Clay
Northeast Region Public Information Officer, Colorado Parks and Wildlife
303-291-7234 / [email protected] 
@CPW_NE

CASTLE ROCK, Colo. - The Douglas County Sheriff Office and Colorado Parks and Wildlife is issuing a reminder to residents to lock your vehicles and keep garages closed to keep perpetrators of the two- and four-legged kind from breaking in.

Property crime (burglary, theft and motor vehicle theft) has increased by eight percent. That combined with recent incidents of bears getting into cars or entering garages in search of food sparks this elementary reminder. Taking a couple simple steps can help prevent personal property damage and loss. 

“Please help us by reducing the opportunity. This may very well help eliminate the crime. Here are a few suggestions that may help minimize the risk,” said Sheriff Tony Spurlock, Douglas County Sheriff.

• Always lock your car door and completely close your car windows. Don’t make it easier for a thief to enter your car.

• Remove valuables. Don’t make your car a more desirable target for thieves by leaving valuables in plain sight. Don’t think thieves are fooled by a jacket covering valuables, they know to look under those as well.

• When parked in front of your house or on your driveway, take the garage opener with you. The garage door opener is an easy way to gain entry to your garage. 

• When out and about, park in well-lighted areas.

• Park in attended lots, thieves do not like potential witnesses.

In the Town of Larkspur alone, CPW has already received reports of three vehicles being broken into by bears this spring and three other reports of bears entering open garages, as recent as May 22.

“Bears have an extremely keen sense of smell and excellent memories, and once they have learned about a reliable source of food, they will often return,” said CPW Wildlife Officer Sean Dodd. “Anything that carries a scent should be removed from your car. That includes small items like lip gloss or sunscreen, or food scraps hiding under your seats that maybe your children dropped. Both of these cases have already led to bears breaking into cars this spring in Larkspur.”

From 2019-21, CPW recorded 652 reports of bears that had broken into cars.

To keep a bear out of your car, you’ll first want to remove all attractants from vehicles. Make sure not to leave anything with a scent that might draw in a bear. Second, make sure to always keep your car doors locked and windows up. Bears are very intelligent animals and can open car doors as easily as a human can. This video from April 29 in Larkspur is an example of how a locked car door will keep a bear out.

Bears that do enter often get trapped inside the car after the door closes behind them. If this goes unnoticed, it can lead to incredible damage to the vehicle and, ultimately, the bear’s death from the heat if in there long enough. Please follow these two simple rules to avoid car break-ins by bears and encourage your neighbors to do the same.

Bears entering open garages is an annual problem. Open garage doors pose a risk of further habituating bears because they often find a food reward once inside. CPW is asking residents to close garage doors when not utilizing them. 

To learn more about being bear aware, and bearproofing your home, please visit CPW online by clicking here. To visit the website of the Douglas County Sheriff, please click here.