The stereo was ripped out of his Cutlass Supreme, and his father's camera was stolen. Not long after, Fries caught three prowlers in his driveway. He got behind the wheel and chased their car down Lancaster Avenue, across five communities, before police caught the suspects. I couldn't move my jaw,'' Fries recalled. All this is echoed in Philadelphia, where thieves may have leaner pickings.
Theft is reported more frequently in middle-class neighborhoods than in the poorest sections.
Northeast Philadelphia is one of the least violent areas, yet it has patches where property-crime rates are some of the city's highest. The police sector where Franklin Mills is located reports more property crime than any other in Philadelphia. But malls have gotten smarter, too, adding security guards and surveillance cameras. In booming suburbs, thieves often strike before new homes are finished. Construction sites unattended at night offer easy pickings, police say.