EAST ALTON - A few residents of Tomlinson Street in East Alton awoke to find belongings missing from their vehicles.
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While a representative of the East Alton Police Department told Riverbender.com the stolen items were mostly loose change and objects of little value, one woman said her son's school project - worth 100 points - was stolen from her vehicle. It was in his backpack. The representative of the police department said none of the vehicles were broken into, but were instead unlocked.
"I don't know why in 2018 people still leave their vehicles unlocked," he said. "That reasoning escapes me."
He said these thefts, which are usually minor, but can sometimes gain items such as high-end electronics and even firearms, are "feast or famine." He said they come in waves sporadically through East Alton, Wood River and Alton. Other reports have come from Bethalto and Rosewood Heights in previous waves.
The cause of these, according to previous interviews with the Madison County Sheriff's Office, is partially the current drug epidemic ravaging not just Madison County, but the entire nation.
As of now, the East Alton Police Department has not received calls for broken windows or other forced entry into vehicles, and nothing of major monetary value has been reported stolen at this time. The representative said as many as three calls for thefts from vehicles had been reported Tuesday morning.
