Belmont, Sanbornton Police Chiefs ask citizen vigilence to help combat burglaries

The police departments of Belmont and Sanbornton are asking the residents of their towns to be on the lookout for anything out of the ordinary.

The calls for help are in response to a recent rash of residential forced entries in both communities.

“We have stepped up the amount of time we spend out on patrols,” Sanbornton Chief Steve Hankard said. “We have a lot of area to cover, and we are doing our best to be highly visible. The most important help we can get comes from our citizens. People should pay close attention to what is happening near their homes. Listen for weird noises and and watch for strange vehicles. Let us know immediately. It is better to have a false alarm than to ignore something that would justify our response.”

The number for the Sanbornton Police Department is 286-4323. Calls are answered 24/7.

According to Hankard, there have been at least 10 incidents involving forced entries. For the most part, electronics have been the target. Most of the homes affected have been summer residences, and the break-ins have been spread across the town.

Hankard said he did not have a tally of the property stolen or its value. “In many of these cases, the owners will not be here until this weekend to do an inventory of what is missing,” he said.

In Belmont, Chief Vincent Baiocchetti reported his department is investigating a rash of burglaries and vehicle thefts that occurred in the Mallard’s Landing, Lake Winnisquam area of town over the past two weeks.

Baiocchetti echoed the Sanbornton Chief’s comments, saying, “We continue to investigate several leads and to evaluate the physical evidence, but it is still very important that people remain aware of their surroundings and lock their homes and vehicles, even while they are home. We also ask neighbors to watch each other’s residences and property. Please notify the Belmont Police Department of any suspicious activity, regardless of how insignificant it might be. We would rather get called and find out it was nothing than not get called and find out it was something.”

The number of the Belmont Police Department is 267-8351. This number is also answered around the clock.

The Belmont chief reported that Detective Raechel Moulton is investigating a burglary at the Vault Hair Salon on Main Street. At approximately 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, a Vault employee returned to the salon, and, upon arrival, saw a white male wearing a dark sweatshirt and a cap running from the scene. Belmont police officers, assisted by a State Police K9 unit, searched the area with no results. So far, according to Baiocchetti, it appears that only a small amount of money is missing.

Anyone with information about this incident should call Detective Moulton at the Belmont Department’s number – 267-8351.