Douglas County residents report increase in vehicle burglaries during summer and fall months

CASTLE ROCK, Colo., - Douglas County residents are on high alert after the Sheriff’s Office said they’ve received an increase in calls for vehicle burglaries since July.

Many of the burglaries are happening in the late afternoon and early evening hours at trailhead parking lots, the Sheriff’s Office said in a release.

But many residents report overnight car burglaries in neighborhoods too.

Social media sites in Castle Rock are flooded with stories of people having their cars and trucks broken into.

Chuck Frederick said he was away camping for Labor Day weekend when someone broke into his work truck and stole over $20,000 worth of diesel mechanics' tools over a 2 1/2-hour period.

“He was real quiet, closed everything up after he was done, went through all the drawers, I had all lined with boxes, this cabinet back here was just all stacked with tool boxes, and it just made it really easy for him to just take all out,” said Frederick.  “He took about 200 pounds of copper welding leads out of the side, so on the film you can see him making trips back and forth over that way.”

Frederick said the tools are insured, but that doesn’t help his peace of mind.

“It took me 10 years to build up all those tools and they’re gone now,” said Frederick.

Frederick, who has lived in Castle Rock since the 1990's, said he attributes the increase in vehicle break-ins to the population boom throughout Douglas County.

If you know who’s responsible, you’re urged to call either the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office or the Castle Rock Police Department.