SPRINGDALE (KFSM) -- The Springdale Police Department is trying to help make sure new gifts stay with their owners -- it's called a Burglar Box, a resource for people who are unsure of what to do with empty Christmas boxes.
"If you get a Christmas gift that might be a 50 inch TV, new computer or large ticket item and you don't want to put it on your curb, to let people know, 'Hey, I just bought this come break into my house.' This just gives them a different alternative. So they can drop it off here," said Springdale Police Lt. Jeff Taylor.
Police said package thieves are people who will drive around neighborhoods looking for potential targets with new expensive toys inside.
"They are looking for those items that maybe they got for Christmas. You know they've been saving up all year, they bought this new computer, new TV, new refrigerator, washer and dryer, and if they see that on the side of the road, they think that might be a target for later on."
Later may not be Christmas Day, Taylor said it could be when the holidays are over during the day when everyone is back to a regular schedule.
"A lot of times it could be a daytime burglar because they know people are back to work and they know people are not going to be home. So they try to do it when people are at work."
Taylor explained they do not see a large amount of these thefts, but the SPD Burglar Box a way for the department to be proactive instead of reactive.
"If you drive around, you always see a lot of trash, more trash after Christmas than any other time of the year because of all the Christmas gifts. So it's really one of those things we want to try to prevent it even if we don't see an uptick in it. We want to make sure we prevent it on the front end if we at all possibly can," Taylor said.
The Burglar Box is available to anyone in the area who wishes to use it and is meant for cardboard only. The box is located at the Springdale Police Department.