Photo by Beck Gusler, obtained via https://www.flickr.com/

Tis the season for giving and, in some cases, taking.

Every year after Cyber Monday, the day when many people order Christmas and holiday gifts online, package thieves do a little shopping of their own, applying their special five-finger discount.

Decatur Police Lt. Jennifer Ross has some tips for people looking to avoid having their packages stolen from their homes.

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– Take advantage of scheduled deliveries, delivery notifications, in-store pick-up and rerouting or rescheduling options that are offered by shipping companies.

– Ship packages to your work address or to someone you trust who is home during the day.

– When traveling, ask a family member, friend or neighbor to check for packages at your home. You may have received a gift delivery you were not expecting.

– If you observe someone you do not recognize removing packages from a neighbor’s property call police immediately and provide detailed descriptive information of the person, as well as vehicle if one is involved, and their direction of travel.

Maj. Stephen Fore with the DeKalb County Police Department offered this advice.

“The greatest way to prevent packages from be stolen is to have them held for pickup,” he said. “I believe USPS, UPS and FedEx all offer this option. It’s the only sure way to guarantee a package is not stolen from your door if you’re not going to be home for the delivery.”

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