Crime Prevention Tip

The next several tips are going to deal with the most common types of frauds and scams. With the recent events in Oklahoma, this tip will focus on how to avoid fraudulent charitable contribution scams, whether you are solicited by e-mail, phone, mail or through social media.

• Do not respond to unsolicited (SPAM) e-mail.
• Be skeptical of individuals representing themselves as officials soliciting via e-mail for donations.
• Do not click on links contained within an unsolicited e-mail.
• Be cautious of e-mail claiming to contain pictures in attached files, as the files may contain viruses. Only open attachments from known senders.
• To ensure contributions are received and used for intended purposes, make contributions directly to known organizations rather than relying on others to make the donation on your behalf. Validate the legitimacy of the organization by directly accessing the recognized charity or aid organization’s website rather than following an alleged link to the site.
• Attempt to verify the legitimacy of the non-profit status of the organization by using various Internet-based resources, which also may assist in confirming the actual existence of the organization.
• Do not provide personal or financial information to anyone who solicits contributions: providing such information could compromise your identity and make you vulnerable to identify theft. Some charities hire professional fund-raisers for large-scale mailings, telephone drives, and other solicitations rather than use their own staff or volunteers, and then use a portion of the donations to pay the fundraiser’s fees. If you’re solicited for a donation, ask if the caller is a paid fundraiser, who they work for, and the percentage of your donation that will go to the charity and to the fundraiser. If you don’t get a clear answer — or if you don’t like the answer you get — consider donating to a different organization.
• Contact the office that regulates charitable organizations and charitable solicitations in your state to see if the charity or fundraiser must be registered. If so, check to make sure that the company you’re talking to is registered. For a list of state offices, visit the National Association of State Charity Officials. You also can check out charities with the Better Business Bureau’s (BBB) Wise Giving Alliance.
• Trust your gut — and check your records if you have any doubt about whether you’ve made a pledge or a contribution. Callers may try to trick you by thanking you for a pledge you didn’t make. If you don’t remember making the donation or don’t have a record of your pledge, resist the pressure to give.
• Be wary of charities that spring up overnight in connection with current events or natural disasters. They may make a compelling case for your money, but as a practical matter, they probably don’t have the infrastructure to get your donation to the affected area or people. Watch out for similar sounding names. Some phony charities use names that closely resemble those of respected, legitimate organizations. If you notice a small difference from the name of the charity you intend to deal with, call the organization you know to check it out.
• Be cautious of promises of guaranteed sweepstakes winnings in exchange for a contribution. According to U.S. law, you never have to give a donation to be eligible to win a sweepstakes. Be wary of charities offering to send a courier or overnight delivery service to collect your donation immediately.
• Do not send or give cash donations. Cash can be lost or stolen. For security and tax record purposes, it’s best to pay by credit card. If you’re thinking about giving online, look for indicators that the site is secure, like a lock icon on the browser's status bar or a URL that begins with "HTTPS://" (the "s" stands for "secure").

Additional crime prevention literature can be found here.

I just took this shroud off....putting back on.

Our prayers to Phoenix PD & FD.

CRIME STATS - APRIL

The following are the top 5 calls for service and arrests for each patrol district -- 4/01/2013 through 4/30/2013.

DOBSON		CENTRAL
Call Type	Frequency	Call Type	Frequency
Subjects Disturbing	395	Subjects Disturbing	425
Check Welfare	370	Check Welfare	337
Loud Music/Noise	210	Other Agency Assist	206
Suspicious Activity	187	Suspicious Activity	196
Other Agency Assist	185	Loud Music/Noise	180
Arrests	Frequency	Arrests	Frequency
Robbery	7	Rape	1
Aggravated Assault	13	Robbery	10
Breaking & Entering	9	Aggravated Assault	11
Theft	53	Breaking & Entering	8
GTA	2	Theft	70
Alcohol/DUI	49	GTA	4
Other Assaults	42	Alcohol/DUI	57
Disorderly Conduct	5	Other Assaults	69
Drugs	57	Disorderly Conduct	33
Fiscal/Forgery	14	Drugs	70
Loitering/Runaway	10	Fiscal/Forgery	25
Sex Offenses	1	Loitering/Runaway	10
Vandalism	28	Sex Offenses	2
All Other	169	Vandalism	29
		All Other	234
TOTAL	459	TOTAL	633

RED MOUNTAIN		SUPERSTITION
Call Type	Frequency	Call Type	Frequency
Subjects Disturbing	381	Check Welfare	360
Check Welfare	364	Subjects Disturbing	242
Loud Music/Noise	250	Burglary Alarm	239
Burglary Alarm	249	Other Agency Assist	202
Suspicious Activity	231	Suspicious Activity	160
Arrests	Frequency	Arrests	Frequency
Robbery	3	Aggravated Assault	7
Aggravated Assault	7	Breaking & Entering	12
Breaking & Entering	12	Theft	73
Theft	70	GTA	2
Alcohol/DUI	60	Alcohol/DUI	30
Other Assaults	55	Other Assaults	27
Disorderly Conduct	35	Disorderly Conduct	21
Drugs	52	Drugs	24
Fiscal/Forgery	10	Fiscal/Forgery	8
Loitering/Runaway	9	Loitering/Runaway	14
Sex Offenses	4	Sex Offenses	1
Vandalism	26	Vandalism	17
All Other	110	All Other	82
TOTAL	453	TOTAL	297

WE REMEMBER OUR FALLEN...

MPD Honor Guard at MPD Headquarters - LE Memorial Day Ceremony



Chief Milstead on Newsmaker Sunday with John Hook

Instructional video for our new Mesa PD Mobile App

Five Minutes with The Chief - Episode 2013-1

Get To Know...

Through this feature you will get to know a bit about the men and women who work for the Mesa Police Department.

Cari Zanella is in the spotlight this month. She is one of the Administrators in Communications. We recently asked her the following:

Q:  Tell us about a typical work day.
A:  It's always unpredictable because critical issues can pop up that take priority over the day you had planned, no matter how well you think you planned it.

Q:  What do you do when you aren't working?
A:  I treasure every minute I can with my family and especially our granddaughter, Bailey. I also hang out with my circle of friends at least once a week -- our husbands call us the "coven."

Q:  Where did you work before joining Mesa PD?
A:  I worked for a local fire department.

Q:  What music is on your iPod/mp3 player?
A:  It's pretty schizophrenic -- classical, jazz, blues, rock, metal, techno.  Everything but country.

Q:  What is your favorite meal?
A:  A Route 44 cup of Sonic Ice. Maybe get fancy and add a shot of Sprite Zero.

Q:  What is your favorite movie or TV show?
A:  The Walking Dead, Sons of Anarchy.

Q:  If you could go anywhere on vacation, where would you go and why?
A:  Nepal or India.  They're on on the Bucket List. 

Q:  If you could have a super power, what would it be and why?
A:  The ability to see the future. Every Powerball would be mine. :-)

Q:  What sound do you love?
A:  Rain.

Q:  If you could learn to do anything, what would it be?
A:  ...today?  I would learn all the payroll rules and how they apply to Kronos (our payroll system).

Watch for future installments of the "Get To Know..." feature!

We have Awesome Volunteers!

This week is National Volunteer Week and we would like to say thank you to our 130 VIPS (Volunteer in Police Service).  Last year they saved the citizens of Mesa around $590,000 by donating 27,000 hours of their time in a variety of police services. VIPS is a tremendous asset to the city and they assist in many departments ranging from Victim Assistance, Forensic Services and Patrol Support. These volunteer services enhance public safety and the quality of law enforcement which is undoubtedly one of the most challenging and rewarding opportunities for volunteerism today.

Mesa PD's App is Here!

The Mesa Police Department is proud to present our mobile application. This free application gives you access to the latest news, photos, videos, events, alerts and crime information no matter where you are. In addition, the application allows two way communications using Twitter, Facebook, and a special feature for submitting anonymous tips to the Department. Check out all the features and where to download here.