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Anaheim Police outline crime-prevention steps, offer free security assessments to residents and businesses
Summary
Anaheim Police presented crime-prevention strategies including CPTED (crime prevention through environmental design), neighborhood watch expansion, business security tips and a free security-assessment program for residents and businesses.
Anaheim Police Department officials presented strategies to prevent residential, commercial and vehicle burglaries, described neighborhood and business outreach, and offered free security assessments to residents and property owners.
Sergeant Eric Anderson and the department’s crime-prevention specialists said Anaheim saw a decrease in burglaries and vehicle thefts in 2024 compared with 2023 — a 21% drop in residential and commercial burglaries and a 26% drop in vehicle thefts for a cited reporting window — and stressed that prevention is “more cost effective than investigation.” The police urged simple measures such as locking garage doors, using motion-activated lighting and cameras, avoiding leaving valuables in vehicles and registering a Wave-style card or account if transit benefits are used.
The department described CPTED (crime prevention through environmental design) concepts — natural surveillance, access control, territorial reinforcement and maintenance — and said certified crime-prevention staff and officers can conduct free on-site security surveys for businesses, homeowners associations and apartment complexes. The department also recommended neighborhood-watch formation and described an internal process for starting and following up on groups.
Police said they will prioritize foot patrols and targeted enforcement in high-theft areas, coordinate with businesses for trespass and cleanup efforts along rail-adjacent properties, and offer crime-mapping and real-time alerts through Anaheim Anytime.
The presentation was informational; the council did not vote on any policy change but several council members praised the outreach program and asked the department to supply counts of active neighborhood-watch groups and the frequency of security assessments.
