Areas of Charlotte see increase in break-ins

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As more people travel this time of year, police in Charlotte worry about a trend they're seeing in some parts of the city: People breaking into homes.

Bob Beach has lived in Dilworth for 40 years and says his neighbors look out for each other.

"We're a pretty close-knit area," Beach said.

He was surprised when Eyewitness News told him about a spike in home burglaries in Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department's Providence Division.

He said he always keeps an eye out for anyone suspicious.

"Occasionally I'll see maybe some cars drive through real slow like they're looking, but you don't know if they're looking at houses or what they're looking at," Beach said.

Recent numbers from CMPD show while citywide home break-ins are down 5 percent, in the Providence Division they're up 12-percent.

"We have noticed an uptick in our residential burglaries, something that does concern us and we take very seriously," said Lt. Rich Austin with the CMPD.

Austin said historically they see more break-ins during holiday months.

"A lot of folks typically in our area, we find typically do go out of town quite a bit this time of year," he said.

The CMPD is stepping up patrols and cranking out communication to residents through an email list.

"We send out crime alerts, to let folks know, to call 911 if they see anything suspicious," Austin said.

If you're leaving town, you can call police and have them do a zone check around your home.

Austin said to stop mail and newspaper delivery and always call if you see anything suspicious.

WSOC