Police Chief shares safety advice

The best thing we can do as a community is to ensure that we are securing vehicles, homes, garages, out buildings, etc. Exterior security lighting and video surveillance cameras can also be an effective means of both deterring this type of activity while also protecting your property and home.”

Stanley Police Chief Lance Weiland

Items being stolen from vehicles has been on the rise recently in the City of Stanley. For Stanley resident Anastasia Alix, it hit a little too close for comfort. On September 25th at 1:39 am Alix was alerted by her surveillance system that someone was on her property, so she woke up her husband, Noah, and they proceeded to go outside to check.  She shared that while they normally lock their vehicles, on this occasion their vehicles weren’t locked. “When we opened up the door, one of my car lights was on, but the doors were shut still. They had time to shut the door before they took off,” she stated and mentioned that her husband then saw four or five young individuals dressed in black begin to run. Alix realized that they probably startled the individuals, who her and her husband began to follow in their vehicle while they dialed 911.  “We chased them down our alley,” Alix continued but added that they eventually lost track of them, but the responding police officer followed in the direction they saw them go.

“They did not, to my knowledge, take anything,” Alix said thinking that they didn’t have enough time. “God really had our back because nothing was taken,” she remarked. She added that her and her husband prayed for the individuals that they would learn their lesson and have a change of heart before they make choices that negatively affect the rest of their lives.

Stanley Police Chief Lance Weiland stated that the police department has taken five different reports of vehicles that have been entered over the course of approximately one week. Each of the five vehicles were left unlocked and there were no signs of forced entry. The vehicles were all located in Stanley in the areas of McKnight Street and West First Avenue, Washington Street, South Franklin Street, the 700 block of North Broadway Street and the 100 block of Second Avenue. The Stanley Police Department did request that any residents or business owners in the areas with video surveillance check their recordings for anything of interest in the investigation. The Police Department did receive video surveillance from local residents and multiple private businesses that they viewed in an attempt to locate or identify individuals or vehicles of interest to aid in their investigation. The investigation is ongoing and though they have spoken to multiple individuals regarding the complaints, at this time, no arrests have been made.

Chief Weiland’s advice to concerned Stanley residents is, “The best thing we can do as a community is to ensure that we are securing vehicles, homes, garages, out buildings, etc. Exterior security lighting and video surveillance cameras can also be an effective means of both deterring this type of activity while also protecting your property and home.” He encourages any residents that see suspicious activity on their home surveillance to contact their local police department right away. He adds, “Please do not wait and don’t ever feel like you might be inconveniencing us, as the more time that passes, the more challenging it becomes.” Chief Weiland explains that residents can always remain anonymous and provide information regarding any crime or matter via Chippewa County Crime Stoppers at 715-944-3949.