Police stress importance of keeping cars locked

Dubai: Police have urged the public to ensure they lock their vehicles properly after exiting them to avoid falling victim to thieves who steal valuables left in cars.

Many cases of money and goods being stolen from cars have occurred due to owners' negligence and failure to lock their vehicles, said Lieutenant Colonel Nasser Al Shamsi, director of Dubai Police's Forensic Laboratory and head of the Weapon and Machinery Traces Examination.

The department last year looked into 29 cases of theft of valuables left inside cars, out of which seven cases happened as a result of owners' negligence or relying on remote controls which did not work properly to lock cars, he said.

Motorists who reported such cases were misinformed about the safety features of their vehicles, and assumed the car would lock itself automatically once they stepped out, Lt Col Al Shamsi. This feature, however, is only available in a few models, he added.

Defects and malfunction

Also, remote locking systems often malfunction, or a door could have a defect that prevents it from responding to the remote, he pointed out.

In one case, a man reported the theft of Dh100,000 he had kept in his unlocked car. He had assumed the vehicle would lock itself automatically when he stepped out, but it was not equipped with any such feature.

In another case, valuable items were stolen from a car because of a malfunction in its automatic locking system, Lt Col Al Shamsi said. He advised the public to watch out for any possible defects in the locking mechanisms and ensure their cars are locked properly while leaving them.