Roslan (right) congratulates Inspector Dorairajah of the district Crime Investigation Department after presenting him with a commendation certificate during the monthly parade.
KUCHING: Those planning to celebrate the upcoming Chinese New Year away from home are advised not to ‘advertise’ their impending absence on social networks so as not to tip off potential criminals.
Kuching district police chief ACP Roslan Bek Ahmad said those with the habit of informing friends on Facebook or Twitter of their holiday plans are inadvertently putting themselves at risk of having their homes broken into.
“If you post that you are going to be away or ‘Check-In’ your current location on Facebook, you are only exposing yourself to potential criminals who could be monitoring your movement on these sites,” he said after leading a monthly police parade at District Police Headquarters here yesterday.
Additionally, he advised home owners to properly secure their property and only inform the police and trusted neighbours of their travel plans so that they can help keep an eye on their house during the period of their absence.
“Lock all the doors and windows, leave some lights on, cancel your newspaper delivery and, if possible, install security cameras which are not very expensive nowadays.”
Roslan also disclosed that police will be conducting a number of operations over the coming festive period, focusing specifically on house breaking and car theft.
He hoped that the public will understand that such operations are not aimed at disrupting their celebrations, but to ensure they will be able to celebrate in a peaceful and safe environment.
Touching on the crime index, he revealed that the crime rate in the district had declined for the third consecutive year, with the number of cases reported last year decreasing 30 per cent compared to the previous year.
He added that the aim of the police is not just to combat crime, but also improve the perception of the public so that they would feel safe wherever they are.
“I am aware that there are some snatch victims who decided not to lodge police report as they did not suffer much loss.
“However, it is important that all crimes be reported to the police as the statistics will enable us to identify potential crime-prone areas and strategise to tackle the issue,” he said.
In his speech to his men during the monthly parade, Roslan urged them to maintain a high level of integrity and work ethics while discharging their duties to ensure the crime index is brought down further.
He also presented commendation certificates to police personnel and civilians, as well as a trophy and RM20,500 prize money to personnel from Satok Police Station for finishing runners-up in Category B of the national-level Police Station League Table competition last year.