Police working to drive down number of break-ins in region

Waterloo Regional Police are continuing to investigate break-and-enters that are taking place at homes around the region.

In 2024, there have been at least five cases of targeted break-ins. This comes after at least six targeted break-ins in December.

Some of the areas that have been targeted include the Gore Road area of North Dumfries Township, the Bridgeport Road North area of Waterloo, the Deer Ridge area of Kitchener, and the Fiddlesticks neighbourhood in Cambridge.

WRPS Chief Mark Crowell said that homes that are targeted often back onto large areas of green space.

“We have seen in the past sometimes organized crime groups that are approaching a door, posing as potentially a delivery type of service, and then they are going around to the back and gaining entry through a glass door or they’re smashing through windows,” Crowell said.

Police are reminding everyone to ensure that the door to their home is locked at all times even when there is someone home. Other tips to avoid these types of break-ins include keeping some lights on at all times and reporting suspicious activity to police.

Crowell said that police have had some success in lowering the number of break-ins in recent years. There were around 1,000 break-and-enters in the region in 2023. The five-year average before that was 1,400.

“This is one of our top areas of concern, and crime suppression and we’re trying to drive down and intervene,” Crowell said. “We’ve had some success, but every break-in is traumatic, and we’re doing everything we can to intervene. Community cooperation helps a lot.”