Cape Fear Valley steps up security after rash of vehicle break-ins

FAYETTEVILLE, North Carolina (WTVD) -- Cape Fear Medical Valley Medical Center is increasing its security measures following a string of vehicle break-ins at the employee parking lot.

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A total of 24 vehicles were broken into at the Cape Fear Valley Medical Center recently. Police responding to one break-in call Thursday morning about 5:20 a.m. arrived to find that 10 vehicles had been broken into. On Saturday, police received another call about a similar situation. When they arrived, they found 14 vehicles had been broken into overnight.

Police said most of the vehicles had windows broken and that several items were stolen, among them, a handgun, money, small electronic items, and a purse.

The break-ins have put employees on edge. Some reached out to ABC11 expressing fear for their safety. Meanwhile, the hospital is hoping to ease those concerns with increased police and security patrols.

"We've more than doubled the security presence in the parking lot and as always have emphasized if they feel unsafe at night they can have a security officer escort them to their vehicles," said Brian Pearce, CFVMC Director of Emergency Management.

In addition to the increased patrols, the hospital has also added several new sets of security cameras tasked with keeping an eye on foot traffic passing through the property.

"Gates round here slow the traffic down. But nothing is guaranteed. So we do the best we can with what we have to work with," said security officer Willie Vann. "The people that stay around here, they're good people. We can't knock everybody down because we have a few incidents that happened."

Vann said though the cameras can only do so much, he's hoping employees do their part in securing their valuables and locking their vehicles.

"Everybody is in security whether you're security or not. It's everybody's part," Vann said.

The Fayetteville Police Department said the suspects appear to be in their teens. It's reviewing surveillance video in hopes of identifying them. If you know anything about these crimes you're asked to call Crimestoppers at (910)-483-TIPS.