To break into an apartment without taking any risks, burglars compete in inventiveness. After the dot of glue on the front door or the white sheet in the mailbox, a new object finds its use with crooks.
Every year, hundreds of thousands of burglaries are recorded in France. According to figures from the Ministry of the Interior, more than 200,000 incidents are recorded annually, with peaks during school holidays, but also during the week, in the middle of the day, when residents are at work. Criminals prefer times when homes are unoccupied, in order to act quickly and without confrontation. To limit the risks, they are doubling their imagination and developing discreet techniques to check if a home is empty before taking action.
In recent years, several methods have been reported by law enforcement. Among them, the white sheet slipped into a mailbox and deliberately left protruding: if it remains in place for several days, this may indicate a prolonged absence. Another stratagem: the dot of glue placed on a front door, allowing you to check if it has been opened in the meantime. Simple tips, almost invisible, but extremely effective for targeting unoccupied homes. And now, a new technique is worrying the authorities, particularly after several incidents reported in Saint-Jean-de-Verges, in Ariège, reports the newspaper La Dépêche.
In this town, four burglaries were recorded in just two weeks. One detail particularly caught the attention of investigators and residents. The authorities thus alerted the population: “A particularity in the way of operating is the presence of one (or more) toothpicks in the lock or in the door jambs. A local resident also reported having found toothpicks without having been robbed. It is likely that this is a method of tracking, as was the case with the white sheets in the mailbox or in the garden.” The principle is simple: if the toothpick remains in place, it means that the door has not been opened, suggesting an absence. On the other hand, if it falls or disappears, the occupants are probably present.
Faced with these practices, the authorities remind us of the importance of adopting a few simple reflexes to deter burglars. Having your mail picked up by a neighbor, installing lights with motion detectors or programming lamps to simulate a presence are all effective actions. It is also recommended to report any prolonged absence to the police or gendarmerie via the Holiday Tranquility operation. Finally, remaining attentive to your environment (unusual traces on a door, moved objects or discreet signs) can help detect these attempts at identification and avoid the worst.
