The following Crime Watch notices have been forwarded to the Woodruffs by Deputy Walter Wolf of the Lake County Sheriff's department. He can be reached as follows:

1-8-12

First of all I would just like to re-remind everyone to please lock your car doors at all times whenever you leave your vehicle unattended for any length of time. We are starting to see an increase of unlocked vehicles being broken into from all of Lake County.

For those of you that are not aware we have had a program that has allowed you a couple of times a year to drop off at designated locations any old or non used prescription medications. For your convenience we now have permanent drop off locations throughout Lake County. Following are the locations and times for the drop off’s.

Lake County Sheriff’s Office has two locations, 1. 360 Ruby Street Tavares Florida 2. South Lake District Office 15855 State Road 50 Clermont Florida. Both are Monday thru Friday 8:30 A.M. until 5:00 P.M.

Clermont Police Department 865 W. Montrose Street Clermont Florida. Monday thru Friday 8:00 A.M. Until 6:00 P.M.

Eustis Police Department 51 East Norton Avenue Eustis Florida. Monday thru Friday 8:00 A.M.

Fruitland Park Police Department 506 West Berchman Street Fruitland Park Florida. Monday thru Friday 8:00 A.M. thru 5:00 P.M.

Groveland Police Department 156 South Lake Ave Groveland Florida. 24 hours a day seven days a week.

Howey in the Hills Police Department 101 North Palm Ave Howey in the Hills Florida. Monday thru Friday 9:00 A.M. until 3:00 P.M. Call in advance 352-324-2030.

Lady Lake Police Department 423 Fennell Blvd Lady Lake Florida. Monday thru Friday 8:00 A.M. until 5:00 P.M.

Tavares Police Department 201 East Main Street Tavares Florida. 24 hours a day seven days a week.

Umatilla Police Department 251 North Central Ave Umatilla Florida. Monday thru Friday 8:00 A.M. until 4:00 P.M.

Leesburg and Mt. Dora police Department’s will have a program setup in approximately 30 days.

Hope that this information will be of some help for you.

Hope all have a safe weekend.

Walter

12-16-11

First of all I would like to remind everyone that if you should change your e-mail address please let me know as soon as possible so that I can change it in my crime watch data bank.

Next, with the Christmas Holidays approaching unfortunately we usually see an increase in theft crimes. Over the last several months I’ve noticed that local law enforcement agencies around Central Florida are having an issue with attempting to locate certain stolen items or in some cases make an arrest due to the lack of serial numbers being furnished by the victims of the thefts. I realize that it may take a little of your time, however it would benefit you to record the serial numbers of items such as your electronic devices, televisions, stereos, iPods, gps systems, computers, ect: ect:. Also you need to record the serial numbers of any weapons that you own. Once you record the numbers secure the list in a safe place. It would also be helpful if you would take photos of the items. If you should then become a victim of a theft it would help us in law enforcement in identifying, recovering, and possibly making an arrest.

Have a safe weekend.

11/11/11

I just wanted to alert everyone to a possible scam that may be circulating in Lake County. There may be a group of young people going door to door soliciting for a donation for books for children. The amount asked for is $60.00, ( $50.00 donated to books for children and $10.00 for the suspect’s school team). If you agree to a donation you will be asked to write a check, the suspect then would write out what appears to be a receipt that would require your signature. Most people sign without reading the document. What you would be signing is a document that would allow a corporation out of Georgia to electronically withdraw funds from your checking account. I just want everyone to be aware of this potential receipt fraud.

All take care and have a safe Veterans Day Holiday weekend.

Sheriff Gary Borders also sends his sincere appreciation to all Veterans and their families who have served our Country.

9/12/11

Good evening everyone. I just wanted to bring a couple of things to everyone’s attention. First of all we have had several vacant home break-ins in the Leesburg, Fruitland Park area. So far the break-in’s have occurred in homes that are owed by seasonal resident’s. Just as a precaution If you are watching someone’s house while they are away you may want to check it. We do have a suspect and expect a arrest in the near future.

We are also seeing thefts of golf carts from various areas of the county. In most cases we have recovered the cart’s as they are only being used as joy rides. Please if you have a golf cart try and secure it when left out(even though the keys are most likely a universal key don’t leave it in the ignition when un occupied).

Everyone take care.

Walter

6/1/11

Just wanted to let everyone know that we have had several, both attempted and actual home break-ins where the rear sliding door was either left unlocked or jimmied open. I just wanted to remind everyone to make sure your doors are always locked. Also remember to use your alarm systems whenever possible.

Hope all had a safe holiday weekend.

5/1/11

Good afternoon everyone. I just wanted to let everybody know that we are starting to see a increase in the theft of utility type trailers from all over the county. Please if you have a trailer at least attempt to secure it with a trailer lock.

I still have not been able to put together the crime stats by zone’s for the month of March. Our computer section (IT) at the Sheriff’s Office is putting together a program for me that will help make it easier for me to put together the information by patrol zone that I send out.

Please bare with me as it’s all a new system for me and the Sheriff’s Office and Is taking a little longer then it normally would.

4/28/11

This message is for any innocent person who goes to work, college or school or even driving or walking the streets alone. If you find a young person or child crying on the side of the road. And she/he is showing you their address and is asking you to take them to that address...Don’t!! Instead, take that child to the POLICE STATION or call 9-1-1!! No matter what you do, DO NOT go to that address. This is a new way for gang members (MS13) to rape, hurt, or kill people. Please forward this message to all (men & women) so that they can inform their sisters & friends and family. Please don't feel shy to forward this message. This message may save a life, perhaps yours

4/25/11

Good morning, I just wanted to alert everyone to a suspicious incident that happened Friday in the Astatlula area. We had a report of a blue van (unknown year, make, or model) occupied with 4 white males wearing blue scrubs going door to door telling people that they are with Environment Air Services and wanting to inspect their house’s. If you should see any activity resembling this please call the Sheriff’s Office at 352-343-2101 as soon as possible so that we can check them out.

3/31/11

Good morning, hope all had a good and safe weekend. I just wanted to reemphasize several of my prior e-mail alerts regarding scam’s and fraud’s. As I have stated in the past there are literally hundreds of different type scams out there. There is no way I could tell you about all of them. The important thing to remember is that no matter how much you want to believe in what appears to be good fortune for you in the form of a authentic looking check being sent to you for many various reasons along with specific instructions of what to do with the check, it’s a scam. We are seeing several variations of scam’s in our area. Please don’t become a victim by cashing any mysterious check’s and following the instructions as what to do with the cash. Also remember your banking institution will not send you a e-mail requesting that you need to furnish them with certain security information pertaining to your checking or saving account. When in doubt go to your bank and talk with a bank officer.

Just for everyone’s information I plan on putting out a talk fusion video e-mail this week regarding scams.

Walter

2/14/11

First of all I would like to thank all of you that have committed positively about the new crime stat form that I recently sent out. A lot of you have asked what the abandoned 911 calls represent. This is the number of 911 calls that are received, but for whatever the reason the call is disengaged by the caller. Most cases its due to the caller mistakenly dialing 911 then hanging up. Law enforcement still has to respond to these type calls. Last month we actually had in addition to the abandoned 911 calls over 7,000 actual 911 calls. I’ll be adding the actual 911 calls to the list when I do this month’s stats.

Hope all will have a good and safe week.

Walter

2/11/11

Just wanted to remind everyone with children to make sure and talk to them about the dangers of approaching any strangers. This week we have had two incidents where someone may have tried to entice young children to get into their vehicle. The first incident happened in the early morning hours in the Mount Dora area. We have no information on the subject. The only information that we have is that they were in a four door blue car with the last letters on the tag possible being MLS. The second incident took place in the afternoon hours in the Clermont area. The subject is described as a white male possibly in his 40’s with brown hair and a beard. The vehicle is described as a full size white pick-up truck. I know that this is not a lot of information, but I just wanted everyone with children to remind them of the dangers of strangers trying to pick them up.

Walter

1/29/11

Good morning all. Just wanted to bring everyone up to date on what is going on within the last week. We have had several work trailers broken into at construction sites in the Eustis, Umitilla area and work tools taken. We are still seeing wiring being taken from air conditioner units mainly in the Astor area we have also had several tags taken from trailers in the Astor area. We have had batteries taken from both lawn mowers and boats in the Lake Mack area. We are still seeing items being taken from docked boats on Lake Harris mainly in the Leesburg area. There have been several unoccupied homes in the south lake county area broken into by lifting the sliding glass door up and out of its track to gain entry. We are still having numerous UNLOCKED vehicles from all areas of the county broken into.

I’m working on a program that will allow me to attach a map of Lake County showing the Lake County Sheriff’s Office patrol zones. This map will be added as a attachment to my e-mail. What I’m planning on doing is putting out a monthly criminal activity report by patrol zones. For those of you that have not been to one of my crime watch meetings The Lake County Sheriff’s Office has 16 patrol zones located within 3 sectors in Lake County. The North Sector is made up of zones 1 through 6 and is located in North East Lake County. The Central sector is made up of zones 7 through 11 and is located in the central and North West area of Lake County. The South Sector is zones 12 through 16 and located in the South area of Lake County. With the map you will be able to relate your communities to patrol zones and thus have a better idea of where the crimes are being committed in relation to where you live.

Take care and have a safe weekend.

1/9/11

Hope everyone had a happy New Year. I just wanted to touch base with everyone and let you know what has been going on so far this year. Following are some of the calls that the Sheriff’s Office has responded to so far this year 1/1/2011 thru 1/9/2011.

Drunk driver’s 7, drunks 21, vehicle hit and run’s 15, traffic accidents 131, missing persons or runaways 15, stolen vehicles 16, reckless drivers 134, suspicious incidents or persons 206, breaking and entering (business 7, homes 48), disturbances 88, robberies 5, trespassers 27, narcotics 10, frauds 24, assaults 80, rapes 1, car break ins 10 ( all 10 unlocked), juvenile complaints 31, vandalism complaints 35, larceny’s 33 burglar alarms 110, noise complaints 72, animal complaints 84, sick persons, injured persons or drug overdoses 405, and last but not least 911 calls 682.

Just as a note one of the vehicles that was broken into was due to someone going out and starting their car so that it could be warming up. They then went back inside their house. When they came back out to the car someone had entered the car and taken several things of value ( lucky they still had their car). If you are in the habit of starting your car to warm up then leave it unattended it would be wise to at least lock it and use a spare key to get into it.

Also I once again have had computer issues, I ‘m pretty sure all my e-mail correspondence was saved, but if you have recently e-mailed me and I have not gotten back in touch with you please re email me with whatever information you needed and I’ll get in touch with you.

As always thank you for your commitment in helping to make Lake County a safer place to live.

Walter

12/14/10

Good afternoon everyone. I just want to let everyone know that so far this month we have already had 42 vehicle burglaries. The hot spot so far this month is the Clermont, Groveland, Mascotte areas with 27 of the 42 vehicles. All but a few were unlocked. The few that were locked all had things of value in plain view. Sometimes I wonder how many of you take stock of all my e-mails that I put out asking that you pass the word around to your friends and neighbors to always (whenever you leave your vehicle unattended) lock their car doors, and never leave anything of value in plain view. I can’t tell you how many times that when I review some of the vehicle burglary reports that I see victim names that I recognize from being part of the crime watch program. Oh well I’ll just keep sending out my alerts and to those of you that take precautions of locking and removing items from view, thank you for your help in not becoming one of our crime statistics.

In one of my last e-mail s I talked about firearms being taken from vehicles. Following is the breakdown of what has taken place from January 1, 2010 thru December 13, 2010. 19 vehicles with firearms or firearm accessories such as ammo have been burglarized. Of the 19 vehicles 13 were unlocked and had one or more firearms taken. 1 vehicle was locked and had a window broken. There was something of value other then the weapon in plain view. The firearm was found and taken after gaining entry to the vehicle. 5 vehicles were unlocked and had firearm accessories such as ammunition taken and in one case a stun gun was taken. These numbers only represent unincorporated Lake County not the Cities. Of the 19 vehicles 6 were in the Clermont, Groveland, Mascotte areas, 3 in the Leesburg area, 2 in the Sorrento area, 2 in the Mt Dora area, and I each in the Eustis, Minneola, Umatilla, Astor, Montverde, and Lady Lake areas. Please if you don’t do anything else and you carry a firearm in your vehicle never leave the weapon in the passenger area of the vehicle when the vehicle is left unattended. If you do not have a trunk most of the newer vehicles have compartments were a weapon could be hidden.

Everyone take care

Walter

12/10/10

With the Christmas Holidays just around the corner I want to reemphasize one of my pet peeves. Locked car doors and not leaving things of value in plain sight. We have had several vehicles in the Clermont area that have had a window broken to gain entry to get purses and wallets that were left in plain view. Please for whatever reason you may have to leave a purse or wallet in your vehicle at least lock it in the trunk.

We have also had things of value taken out of open garages in the Mount Dora, Sorrento areas.

We also are still seeing items being taken from boats that are docked at various lakes around the county.

The last thing I would like to talk about is one of the most important. Over the past year we have had numerous theft’s of firearms from both homes that have been broken into and vehicles that are burglarized. I know that common sense would tell you not to leave a weapon in a unlocked vehicle, but unfortunately we have a lot of people without much common sense. If you want to leave your wallet, purse, computer, GPS, or I-POD in your looked or unlocked vehicle that’s one thing, but if you have to for whatever reason leave a firearm in your vehicle please lock it in the trunk.

Hope all have A good and safe weekend.

11/23/10

Just wanted to let everyone know that for whatever reason we are seeing an increase in the number of boats being vandalized and having items stolen from them. This activity is happening mainly in the central and north areas of Lake County while the boats are docked, on trailers at homes, and while at storage areas. Guess what else is going on around the county??? Right UNLOCKED vehicles being broken into( several in the Grand Island area).

We are still seeing the theft of air conditioners and parts from the north end of the county.

Please with the holiday season upon us be extra careful and cautious while out and about. Whenever possible try and shop in pairs. Always be aware of your surroundings and what’s going on around you. When going to your car always have your keys ready for use and don’t ever be embarrassed to use your remote alarm.

I also wanted to pass on the updated informative information for the e-mail I sent out August 29, 2010. The following numbers are only for unincorporated Lake County from January 1, 2010 through November 23, 2010 where a Deputy Sheriff responded. This does not reflect any of the cities.

Vehicle break-ins 738 with a average of 1 out of 10 being unlocked.

Home break-ins 1318 (these numbers also reflect out buildings such as sheds and garages).

Home alarms 5148

Suspicious people or vehicles 2692

Domestic disturbance’s 3081

Weapon calls or assault and battery 2830

Vandalism 989

Frauds or scams 762

Drug related calls 585

Robbery 49

Vehicle driving complaints 4432

Vehicle accidents 5345

Suspected drunk driver 435

Lost or stolen tags 168

Missing or lost persons 825

Juvenile complaints 1284

Noise complaints 1901

Sick, injured or drug overdose 11116

Natural death calls 157

Stolen Vehicles 537

Hope everyone has a safe and happy Thanksgiving Holiday.

Walter

10/28/10

This video shows two devices that you can use to make your front door more secure

9/19/10

Good morning everyone. Just wanted to let everyone know that in the last 30 days we have had 44 vehicles broken into with all but four being unlocked. The two items being taken the most are GPS systems and computers. The majority of the vehicles being broken into are during the night hours while the vehicles are parked at the victims home. These numbers only reflect the number of vehicles being broken into that something was actually taken from the vehicle. You would not believe the number of people that report that their vehicles were ransacked but nothing was taken so they do not want a report, oh yea all were unlocked.

During this period over half of the vehicles broken into were in the Minneola, Clermont, and South of Clermont area.

In the Umatilla area we had a couple of car batteries taken from the vehicles.

There has been a increase of items being taken from boats from various areas of the county. In the Astor area a boat was broken into while docked on the river. A generator, small outboard motor, a marine GPS system, and various radio equipment was taken. There has also been a increase of reports of gas being taken from boats. If you have a boat docked or stored it may be a good idea to thoroughly check it over to make sure nothing has been taken. In the Astatula area of Little Lake Harris there has been unconfirmed reports of a smaller aluminum boat with two white makes seen late at night going up and down canals and approaching docked boats. Remember when you see something that appears suspicious the quicker that you report it the faster law enforcement can respond.

Remember Sheriff Borders will always tell you that we would rather you call us and it be nothing then not call us and something happens.

Over the years occasionally someone will e-mail or call me to advise that they felt after reporting suspicious activity nothing was done or the responding Deputy did not appear to take their concerns serious. One thing you may not realize is that the way a Deputy may or may not handle certain types of calls depends on the circumstances and even though it appears that something is going on the Deputy may not be able to take what you feel would be the appropriate action. Please never get discourage if you report something and it appears that no action is taken for whatever reason. If you should feel that the Deputy acted improperly you can always call and ask for a supervisor to contact you. In most of the cases that I have been involved in over the years a simple explanation has clarified why something did or did not happen and satisfied the person with the concern. What has usually happened is that the Deputy had calls holding and his apparent non concern was nothing more than trying to hasten the call so they could respond to the next call holding.

As always thank all of you that take the time to become involved with the crime watch/neighborhood watch program.

8/29/10

Just thought that I would pass on some informative information for everyone. The following numbers are only for unincorporated Lake County from January 1, 2010 through August 29, 2010 where a Deputy Sheriff responded. This does not reflect any of the cities.

Vehicle brake-ins 645 with a average of 1 out of 10 being unlocked.

Home brake-ins 1030 with the most by numbers being in the very south end of the county. (these numbers also reflect out buildings such as sheds and garages).

Home alarms 4447

Suspicious people or vehicles 2331

Domestic disturbance’s 2612

Weapon calls or assault and battery 2408

Vandalism 832

Frauds or scams 627

Drug related calls 506

Robbery 42

Vehicle driving complaints 3793

Vehicle accidents 4605

Suspected drunk driver 367

Lost or stolen tags 138

Missing or lost persons 611

Juvenile complaints 1092

Noise complaints 1636

Sick, injured or drug overdose 9514

Hope to see you at the Sheriff’s Town Hall meeting tomorrow and that all have had a good weekend.

8/15/10

Being that I have added so many new people to the crime watch e-mail list during the past several months I just wanted to remind everyone that if you should change your e-mail address please advise me as soon as possible. When you advise me it would help if you include your old e-mail address and the name of your community. Just for information when I send out a crime watch e-mail I send it to myself and Bcc everyone so that you don’t get several hundred names and e-mail addresses.

Also just for everyone’s information from Jan 1 through Aug 15 we are now up to 598 vehicles that have been broken into with well over ¾ of them being UNLOCKED

We have had 967 homes broken into during that time, and have responded to 4,218 burglar alarm calls. We do not know how many of those alarm calls actually may have prevented a home from being broken into. I’m sure there were a significant enough number that would make it a wise decision to use your alarm system’s both at home and your vehicles.

I would also like to remind everyone of the upcoming Sheriff’s Town Hall meeting that will be held on August 30^th at the First Baptist Church of Umatilla at 6:30 PM. For those that have asked if it is ok to attend more than one meeting, the answer is yes. Every meeting is different and from time to time there are changes within the command staff. For those that have never attended one of these meetings you will find it very informative and entertaining. Please pass the word about this meeting to your friends and neighbors.

Hope to see you on the 30^th.

Walter

7/30/10

7/20/10

I just wanted to warn everyone to be extra cautious and warn your children not to pick up any bottles just laying around. If you should find any plastic or glass bottles (usually soda bottles) with any liquid and any shiny material inside of the bottle call law enforcement imminently do not touch it. We have unfortunately had two more incidents in the Clermont area of two plastic soda bottles exploding after being placed outside of two separate residential homes. The explosions were minor and no one was hurt, Please report any suspicious items to law enforcement.

As this is a active criminal investigation I am limited to the information being sent out.

7/6/10

This e-mail is in regards to the e-mail that I sent out to everyone June 21,2010 warning about a e-mail that was circulating warning of homemade explosive soda bottle bombs. In my e-mail I stated that I was concerned about the e-mails advising of the ingredients and basically how to make them. Well unfortunately we have had an incident in the Clermont area where a mail box was blown apart with what appears to have been a homemade soda bottle bomb. Thank God it was a isolated incident and no one was injured. If you should see any bottles that appear to have liquid and any shiny objects(tin foil or aluminum foil) inside of it do not touch it. Call Law Enforcement so it can be checked out.

We have had several incidents in Lake County were twenty dollar counterfeit bills have been passed.

In the Lake Mack area we have had several cases were air conditioner units have been damaged to get the cooper wire. In several of the incidents a white van pulling a black trailer was seen.

Now for this ---In the last thirty days we have had 107 vehicles broken into and guess what ???????? 96 were unlocked. Please pass the word to lock your vehicles.

In the very south end of the county we had a white male approximately 30-35 years old driving a newer black van approached two young girls and tried to engage them in conversation then exposed himself to them. Please warn your children and grand children to never approach strangers and to report any strange activity. You also may want to talk to them about safe houses in your neighborhood that they can run to in a emergency.

Just for your general information we are working on having the next Sheriff’s Town Hall Meeting in Umatilla sometime in August.

6/24/10

Just wanted to advise everyone that with school out we are seeing an increase of various types of vandalism around the county. Most of what we are seeing other than being a pain are relatively harmless(unless it’s your yard that has been toilet papered). However this week mainly in the City of Eustis we have had a very large number of vehicle tires being slashed.

Please report any suspicious activity immediately to your local Police Department or the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. As I have repeatedly said we would much rather you call us and it be nothing then not call us and something happens.

Also please double check your vehicles whenever left unattended (especially at night) to make sure that they are locked.

6/22/10

First of all I would like to thank those of you that attended the Sheriff’s Town Hall meeting last week, and to the many of you that e-mailed me advising me of how much you learned about the Sheriff’s Office and how much you enjoyed the meeting, thank you.

Next I have had several inquiries regarding an e-mail that is currently circulating advising of a explosive homemade soda bottle bomb. Unfortunately it is not a hoax or rumor, its true however it’s not a widespread threat, actually there have only been a couple of isolated cases nationwide (none locally). One however is one to many.

The device is known as a “works bomb” usually the device is made with a plastic soda bottle filled with two ingredients that when mixed becomes very explosive. What worries me about the e-mail is not the warning, it’s that they not only tell you all about it they tell you the ingredients so that anyone after reading the e-mail could make a very dangerous device. What makes the device so dangerous is the chemical reaction when the two ingredients are mixed. The reaction is not immediate, it does take some time for the gas build up. This can be greatly sped up by movement of the bottle.

I do not feel comfortable advising both ingredients that make the device work however if you should see a soda bottle or any bottle that appears to have aluminum foil inside it along with a liquid do not touch or attempt to move it. Move away from it and call law enforcement.

If you have any concerns or questions about this e-mail, e-mail me with a phone number that I can reach you at and I’ll call you.

5/13/10

For those of you that are not aware of it Sheriff Gary Borders has since becoming Sheriff of Lake County in 2006 held a Sheriff’s Town Hall Meeting once a month. Each month a meeting is held at a different community within Lake County. After a 10 minute video overview of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office operations Sheriff Borders introduces his command staff. Each member then explains their specific duties within the Sheriff’s Office. Sheriff Borders feels that this way if you ever have to contact a command member for whatever reason you can put a face to the name. After introductions Sheriff Borders talks briefly about all the various services that your Sheriff’s Office provides to all citizens of Lake County, then opens it up for questions and answers. Normally meetings have been held in either community centers of some of the larger communities or for several communities that have not got a community center the meetings have been held at various local churches. These meetings have been so well received that several communities have invited us back for a second town hall meeting. In the past all but the meetings held at the local churches the attendees have pretty much been from defined communities (such as Plantation or Kings Ridge ect: ect:). The reason for this e-mail is that we will be holding our next Sheriff’s Town Hall Meeting on Tuesday June 15, 2010 at 6:30 PM. The meeting will be held in the gym at Faith Lutheran Church and School located at 2727 South Grove Street Eustis Florida. This location is one block East of SR 19 at the corners of Old Mount Dora Road and South Grove Street. This meeting is for anyone living in Lake County. I have a lot of crime watch communities in and around Eustis so I am inviting all of you to join us for what you will find to be both informative and entertaining. If at all possible the meeting is for adults, however Faith Lutheran has offered to provide a care area for any children that you may have to bring.

Refreshments will be provided after the meeting.

Hope to see you at the meeting

Walter

4/28/10

Here is another "TalkFusion" from the sheriff's department. I had a little trouble viewing it but that may be because I screwed it up. Hope you can view it just fine. Thanks, Susan

Subject: Crime Watch Scam's

Click here if you are unable to view this image.

4/21/10

Just wanted to re-warn everyone of all the different type of scams that are being sent out daily by the thousands. As I have stated in the past there are just too many different type scams out there for me to be able to address all of them. There is one that has just recently surfaced in Lake County were you may receive notification that your name has been drawn in an annual consumers promotional drawing. They tell you that you are entitled to the primary prize of $250,000.00 payable by a certified check that will be delivered to you by courier. They will enclose a check drawn on Bank of America payable from Allstate Life Insurance Company. The check in the amount of $4,970.00 represents the mandatory non Canadian residential tax, insurance, and delivery charges. The letter will state that this check is being sent to you so that you will not have any out of pocket expenses. They will tell you that after cashing the check you will need to send them back $4,770.20 by way of money gram or western union. They also tell you that the difference in the amount that they have sent you and the amount that you send them is yours to do with as you please. They tell you once that is completed they can process your check for they $250,000.00. (I took one of the checks to a bank of America and asked them if a customer of theirs would of brought the check into them to cash what would they do? They ran it through their system and no red flags popped up at that time. They said that they would have deposited the check into your account. The bank said that it would have taken from three days to a couple of weeks for it to come back as it actually being a bad check. Your bank would then debit your account the $4,970.00. If you had done what the people wanted and sent them the money or used any of it you would be responsible to the bank for that amount. As I have said if you ever receive any unsolicited correspondence stating that you have won something or they need certain private information to complete something check it out as many ways possible and even then it still could appear legitimate and not be. I will be putting out a Talk Fusion Video E-Mail in a couple of days addressing this).

We have also seen a increase of trailer thefts and atv thefts in the past couple of weeks. It’s been in all parts of the county but more of an issue in the Groveland, Clermont area. Still a lot of unlocked cars being broken into all over the county. In the Astor area we have had several cars that were parked at recreational areas or fishing areas with the windows down and things of value in plain sight being taken out of the vehicles.

No matter where you are, please always secure your vehicle whenever you leave it unattended.

4/1/10

Good day everyone, I just wanted to bring everyone up to date on several issues. First of all regarding vehicle burglaries in various unincorporated Lake County from January 1, 2010 through March 27^th 2010 we have had 169 vehicles broken into. Out of the 169 vehicles 144 were unlocked and 25 were locked and had a window broken to gain access. That’s 85% of all the vehicles in unincorporated Lake County were left unsecured. Of the 25 that had the windows broken 23 had things of value in plain view. GPS systems were the leading item of things taken from all vehicles. It’s amazing to me the number of people that leave wallets, purse’s, large sums of cash, and weapon’s in unsecured vehicles or they take the time to lock their vehicles but leave those items in PLAIN view. Believe me it does help to secure your vehicles and not leave things of value in plain view (unless you have bears in the area).

I also wanted to warn every one of a scam involving Facebook. You may get a e-mail that appears to be from Facebook saying that your password has to be reset for security reasons. The bogus message informs you that you can find or reset your new facebook password in an attachment. Opening the attachment launches an executable file that triggers the download of a virus that allows others to take control of your computer and steal personal information. This scam actually first appeared in the latter part of 2009. As with a lot of scams, rumors, and hoaxes you can check them out on Snopes.com .

I plan on putting out a talk fusion video this week readdressing issues regarding some of the more resent scams that have recently surfaced in our area.

As most of you know I’m now in my sixth year as the crime watch coordinator with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office. I personally feel that this is and has been one of the most rewarding job’s that I have done in my forty two years in law enforcement. Over the years as the crime watch coordinator I have addressed or talked to literly thousands and thousands of people at various crime watch or safety meetings that I have conducted. I also have done numerous informational TV messages on various local TV news stations as well as news articles in all the local newspaper’s. In saying that when I’m out and about quite often someone will recognize me and come up to me and engage me in conversation ( I really enjoy it). This past Saturday I was shopping at a local store when a gentleman came up to me and with several senior ladies within hearing distance stated “Hay aren’t you that crime guy”? Well I knew what he was referring to, so I stated yes sir I’m the crime guy. Before I could say another word one of the ladies walked up to me and as serious as she could be said “ You ought to be ashamed of yourself committing crimes against honest people like us. Well if looks that I got from those ladies could have killed I wouldn’t be here today. I actually had to show the group my badge to convince them that I was really a good guy. So if you should see me out and about feel free to say howdy but please don’t call me the crime guy!!!!

3/28/10

I plan on putting out a talk fusion video this week readdressing issues regarding some of the more resent scams that have recently surfaced in our area.

3/16/10

Just wanted to let everyone know about a false rumor that has just started circulating in our area. There are many versions of this rumor e-mail that you may receive, the two most popular being about a serial killer or serial rapist. The towns and description as to what happened also change. The e-mail will generally start out with a warning usually to women about being weary about any stranger approaching you and advising you that you had just dropped some money. He will then hand you a bill (a one, five, ten, or a twenty). The suggestion in the e-mail is that this is how a serial killer or rapist is gaining the confidence of women in a certain town.

Not a bad idea for anyone to be cautious, but this is a false rumor that first started surfacing dating back to July of 2003. You can go to snopes.com and type in dropped money for the information on this particular rumor.

Walter

2/19/10

Another bit of important information I wanted to pass onto everyone.

Here are common-sense warnings about our common census about to begin:

Florida Agriculture and Consumer Services Commissioner Charles H. Bronson urges state residents to avoid falling prey to scam artists intent on stealing your identity who may pose as U.S. Census workers.

Approximately 134 million households will be mailed census forms on March 1. The form includes 10 questions about your age, date of birth, race and whether you own or rent a home. It does not ask for your Social Security number or information about your taxes or income.

If you do not return a completed census form by April 1, it is likely that a census taker will either call or come to your door to obtain the information.

Bronson is urging residents to observe the following safety tips:

Do not provide your Social Security number or any financial information, including credit card or bank account information, to anyone claiming to represent the U.S. Census Bureau.

Never invite a census taker into your home.

All census takers carry official government badges.

Census workers are supposed to provide you with a letter from the Census Director on official letterhead.

The Census Bureau will not contact you by e-mail, so any website that pops up disguised as a census survey is fraudulent. The Census Bureau does not solicit information over the Internet.

2/19/10

This was brought to my attention by one of our investigative assistant’s Lynn Dewitt. I just want to pass it onto all our crime watch people so that you can pass it onto your friends and neighbors.

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Online users who socially network their whereabouts could soon become victims thanks to a new Web site called PleaseRobMe.com.

VIDEO: Web Site's Motives Questioned

The Web site sucks data from social messaging services, such as Twitter and Foursquare, and displays information which it says thieves can use to break into homes when it appears no one is there. The site also provides a map to the person's past or present location.

The site's creators said they're not trying to help people burglarize homes but instead want the site to be a wakeup call for people ignorant of their personal security habits.

Local 6 News reporter Jessica D'Onofrio put the site to the test.

"So I'm here at Piper's in downtown Orlando and I've come to find this guy who says that he's here at the sports bar and grill," D'Onofrio said. "I went inside to find him and he had no idea he was on PleaseRobMe.com."

The man did not want to talk on camera, but others did.

"If people want to give out their information and tell the robbers out there when they're not home, let those people have at it and get their stuff stolen," Brian Repple said.

But many believe that instead of exposing these dangers, the site is a menace in its own right.

"I think it's assisting criminals in getting into people's homes, and I think the person who created it should be prosecuted," Sean Devries said.

"I think these people put their information out there for social reasons or for networking or work purposes. I don't think they put it out there so they can get robbed," Shelby Norwich said.

"So the bottom line is if you're on Twitter and Foursquare don't be surprised if you wind up on PleaseRobMe.com," D'Onforio said.

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