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i have gps news for you.
GPS thefts — the new crime trend in Haverhill and Valley Lawrence police use 'bait car' to catch thieves
It has become one of the hottest targets in car burglaries.
The theft of GPS units — electronic devices that gather location information from global positioning satellites and display it on digital maps — has become a trendy crime in Haverhill and Lawrence.
Haverhill police said they have received several reports of vehicles' windows smashed and GPS units taken from inside. It's happened on streets, in driveways and at a hotel.
Haverhill City Councilor William Macek, a member of the city's Public Safety Committee, said GPS devices are simply the latest automotive technology to be the target of thieves.
"First it was eight-track players, then radar detectors, then CD players," he said. "Cars have always had something of street value that is stolen. The industry began coding radios so that once they are removed no one can operate them without that code. Maybe they should have some kind of a registration system for GPS devices."
Lawrence police aren't waiting for such a system. They have planted a fake GPS device in a "bait car" to catch thieves.
"We're not keeping this a secret and we want to get the word out on the street that we're doing this," police Chief John Romero said.
"Hopefully, the word will get around to the people who are going after this stuff that the truck or car you break into might very well be a bait car that police are watching. We are going to give them something to think about. If we do this often enough, people might think twice," Romero said.
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