RESIDENTS have been warned to keep their doors locked after a rise in break-ins.

A car was recently swiped from an address in Mauchline while windows and doors have been smashed at other local addresses.

Some of the crimes reported over the past month have seen yobs sneak into insecure homes, nicking car keys and stealing the vehicle from the driveway as well as property being stolen from insecure vehicles.

Now police are urging families to make sure they are secur ing their homes to prevent further opportunistic crimes.

Safer Communities Officer PC Marshall said: “I would also encourage car owners to lock all items out of sight – don’t leave anything on display and take valuables with you.

“If you have a sat-nav, hide the cradle and take the system with you. Don’t forget to wipe the suction marks off the window.”

PC Marshall added: “If you have personal correspondence in the vehicle, take it with you. Don’t give others access to important personal information or your home address.

“Use an elec tronic or mechanical immobiliser such as a steering lock and if you have an alarm then make sure it’s set.”

Anyone with any information on incidents can call police on 101 (Always 999 in an emergency) or contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 where anonymity can be maintained.