By TOM MOOR South Bend Tribune WSBT-TV

8:48 p.m. EST, December 10, 2011
While you're inside shopping at local stores this holiday season, it's
possible criminals could be outside in the parking lot doing some
shopping of their own — in your car.

Yes, apparently some of the not-so-festive Scrooges out there prefer
to steal this time of year.

With that in mind, police are advising people to be alert this season
for specific holiday-type crimes that can spike this month as people
flood the stores.

One of the most common types of holiday crimes, police say, is
stealing gifts from cars in large parking lots, such as malls or big
box stores.

Police say many people will take breaks from shopping at the mall to
drop boxes off in the car before heading back inside the store. The
problem is many just leave them uncovered for thieves to see.

“Obviously, the main thing is to keep items out of plain view,” said
Sgt. Bill Redman, St. Joseph County police spokesman. “When you’re
shopping, don’t take large amounts of packages and put them in plain
view; put them in the trunk. If it’s an SUV with no trunk, cover them
up with a blanket or hide them in the back. … People need to keep