Zone 2 Chief Says to Remove Items From Cars

Zone 2 Commander Maj. Robert L. Browning after a rash of car break-ins in Buckhead and elsewhere over the weekend has asked citizens to always remove valuables from their vehicles.

"The Atlanta Police Department is looking into all these incidents but we strongly need the public’s help," Browning said in a statement released by the APD public affairs unit.

"We are asking residents not to leave anything of value in their vehicles. In these incidents, IPods, purses, laptops and various other items were in plain view. If items must be left in the vehicle, please place them in the trunk, out of sight."

Browning said that approximately 30 vehicles were vandalized and items removed from vehicles in the Buckhead area and that an apartment complex near Monroe Drive had nine vehicles broken into.

No additional information was available, he said. "Please know that the Atlanta Police Department is doing everything we can to combat these type of crimes and capture those responsible for committing these crimes," he said.

The Buckhead break-ins occcurred early Sunday morning at the Pine Heights Apartments adjacent to the Lenox Heights apartments on Pine Heights Drive, police spokesperson Kim Jones said. 

Nearby apartments, including gated communities, were also hit, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

WSB-TV and radio reported that as many as 50 vehicles had been hit, but that total was not confirmed by the Atlanta police.