Burglary arrests rare; alert neighbors help

A Martinez man and two Augusta juveniles were charged in the burglary of the Backyard Tavern on Wednesday.

A suspicious resident's 911 call led the Columbia County Sheriff's Office to the arrests.

According to crime statistics provided by the sheriff's office, only 12 percent of burglaries committed in the county in 2002 were cleared by arrest.

Sgt. Frank Dodson of the county's Criminal Investigations Division believes the answer to solving more burglary cases lies with people such as the witness who called 911 when he saw something suspicious.

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"If someone wants to break into your house, then they're going to get in. That's the reality of the situation," said Dodson. "But there are things you can do to make it tougher on them - putting bars on the windows or getting an alarm system. Joining a neighborhood watch has been a very effective tool. Having a nosy neighbor can be a great way of catching a burglar.

"If you see a car in your neighborhood that you've never seen before that looks suspicious, then go ahead an write down a description and make sure to right down the tag number. It doesn't do us much good without a tag number, because then we can't check it against the computer. You never know when two days later how much having a nosy neighbor can be a great thing."

Anyone interested in forming a neighborhood watch in their community can call sheriff's office Capt. Jim March at 541-4027 or Lt. Patricia Champion at 541-3970 for more information.