By now, just about every house in your neighbourhood that’s going to be decorated for Christmas has been.
Some keep it simple, with a wreath or a few other small ornaments.
Others opt to line their trees or eavestroughs with coloured lights.
More technologically-inclined households may be opting for digital projectors.
But whatever the decoration, one thing is certain: It’s a potential magnet for thieves.
“If it’s easy for a thief to steal, then a thief will steal it. Lights like these are no exception,” says Cherri Greeno, a spokesperson for Waterloo Regional Police.
There have been several reports of Christmas lights and decorations being stolen in the region recently.
In one case, somebody replaced their stolen lights only to have the new lights stolen only a few hours later.
Another time, a security camera set up at a Waterloo home captured a man nabbing a light projector – then, after an apparent change of heart, returning it.
OPP say one house in Paris had its lights stolen on two separate occasions, while $150 worth of lights were reported stolen from a home in Simcoe on Tuesday.
Kitchener resident Jim Inch found a unique way to deter thieves from nabbing his decorations.
He says he doesn’t know why anyone would want to steal Christmas lights – but after he heard it was happening, he rigged up a special system to prevent it.
“I joined my extension cords together and I tied them in a huge knot, and I taped them, and then I wound them around my railing outside,” he says.
Experts say projectors are particularly vulnerable as they are typically only connected to a small stake that has been driven into the ground.
Finding something more secure to fasten it to is one good way to prevent it to be stolen, they say.
With reporting by Marc Venema
