FCPD Breaks Down Hunters Woods-Area Car Break-ins

Fairfax County Police said that the string of car break-ins along Glade Drive near Hunters Woods Village Center has abated in the last several weeks.

Speaking at a community meeting at Reston Community Center Hunters Woods on Thursday, Lt. Lance Schaible said there were 20 larcenies in the area in April and only four in May.

Police said they recently arrested two adults on stolen credit card charges. Since those two suspects entered custody, nearby larceny incidents have also plummeted, they said.

While those suspects were adults, car break-ins are most often crimes of opportunity committed by teenagers, Schaible said.

“Larcenies generally occur in areas where lots of people (and cars) are close together,” he said. “It occurs near all shopping centers in Reston. Those are also areas with a quick getaway.”

Occasionally, suspects will break windows to get at something of value, such as a phone or a laptop case, police said. But in most instances, they will just go down a row of cars trying to see if any are unlocked.

Police said citizens should double check that car doors are locked. They said a surprising number of people think they have locked the car doors, but in the hurry to get bags, kids and other things into the house, they often have not locked.

They also reminded people to never leave valuables in the car. Even if you are running into your house for a minute, always take your purse, phone, work bag and other valuables.

One resident in attendance asked officers if Metro’s Silver Line is to blame for any crime increase in the area.

Schaible said that has not been proven “because Metro is here but there is nothing around it.” Crime tends to be where people congregate, he added.

However, as development and population continues to grow around Reston’s eventual two Metro stations, staffing and policing needs will be reassessed, Hunter Mill Supervisor Cathy Hudgins said.

“The station is going to be strained,” she said. “It is a fact we are going to need staff.”