Crime & Safety

Locks Punched in Two Mall of Georgia Area Car Break-ins

A third vehicle was entered after the doors were left unlocked.

Gwinnett County Police are investigating multiple car break-ins in which the thief or thieves punched out the door lock to gain access to the interior of the vehicle.

On Jan. 18, a Hoschton resident discovered his 2009 Ford F150 had been entered while he was at Taco Mac on Woodward Crossing Boulevard. The man told police he arrived at Taco Mac at around 10:30 p.m. When he returned to his vehicle three hours later, he noticed the keyhole in his driver’s door had been punched out with a tool. An iPod, which the man said was inoperative, was missing.

The next morning, the man awoke and realized his laptop had also been in the vehicle and was missing. At that point, he contacted police to file a report.

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According to the police report, there was slight damage below the lock where it appeared a tool was used to enter the truck.

“There were also impressions on the left side, right side and just above the lock where it appeared the tool was rotated back and forth to manipulate the lock,” the report stated.

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Gwinnett County Police are also investigating two Jan. 14 car break-ins at L.A. Fitness on Buford Drive.

A Braselton man had his cell phone and a an iPod Nano charger stolen after a thief or thieves punched the lock on his 2006 Ford F250. There was no video surveillance in the area where the vehicle was parked and no witnesses to incident, which is believed to have occurred between 10:30-11:40 a.m.

A second Jan. 14 car break-in at L.A. Fitness is believed to have taken place between 11:30 a.m. and 12:45 p.m. In that incident, the Buford victim did not realize anything was wrong until he received a phone call from his bank in reference to his card. The man said he thought he had left his 2003 Ford F150 locked and was not sure how the thief or thieves gained access. His credit card, Social Security card, driver’s license and $90 cash were among the items reported missing.

All of the cases are listed as active.

The L.A. Fitness car break-ins occurred just two days after four cars were broken into at the Mall of Georgia. In that series of break-ins, two of the cars were forced open and two had been left unlocked.

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