HOUSTON — A lot of people did their holiday shopping on Black Friday and Cyber Monday and that means Amazon, UPS and others will be even busier than usual as they deliver all of those goodies. Unfortunately, it also means it's prime season for porch pirates who are looking for packages to steal.
Shawn McDermott said social media pages in his Museum District neighborhood are flooded with videos showing package thieves in action.
“It’s pretty overwhelming actually," McDermott said.
McDermott even saw one of the suspects in action. He was on a bicycle that was pulling a large wagon.
“I saw him, and I said, 'Oh, I recognize him.' So, I kind of watched him go down the street with his wagon. And I thought well that’s strange," McDermott told us. "It’s just a tied-on wagon and I see him grabbing some packages out of front doors and then going by."
When he saw him pass by again, the wagon was full of boxes.
And it's not just holiday gifts that are being grabbed.
“It could be some elderly person who needs medication. Maybe messing with them, it could cause a death," McDermott said.
With so much captured on surveillance, McDermott wonders if there's any way to further deter crimes like this. Especially when some of what's stolen isn't always easily replaced.
Deputies with Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman's Office are beefing up patrols to try and catch the crooks.
Precinct 4 Captain Vicente Medina warned that the crimes are happening everywhere.
“Unfortunately, this is more like a nationwide deal. It happens everywhere, unfortunately," Medina said.
Medina advises everyone to look out for neighbors and report suspicious activity.
“If you see a delivery guy driving around and you see a vehicle kind of trailing it for an extended period of time, please call your local law enforcement agency," he said.
He also says that if you see a package on a neighbor's porch or in their yard for a while, pick it up for safekeeping and let them know you have it.
You can also have packages delivered to Amazon lockers or your job.
Even if they are caught, thieves could be charged with only a misdemeanor, depending on what and how much they steal.