Essex Police are advising people to be cautious when leaving their windows and doors open during the hot summer months after a spate of burglaries.

The warning comes after a spree of 12 burglaries over the course of 18 days across Stanford-Le-Hope and Corringham.

A safe containing war medals and a pocket watch was taken from a property on Boyce Road in Stanford-Le-Hope on Sunday (July 16).

On the same day, property worth a four figure sum including mobile phones, a laptop, an Apple iPad and money were taken from a home in the same area.

Essex Police say that the hot weather forces people to keep their windows and doors open which can attract burglars.

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A spokeswoman for Essex Police said: "The hot weather encourages people to be lapse with home security and burglars take advantage of this. Doors and windows are left wide open whilst we have a BBQ in the back garden for example. 

"In almost all incidents, valuables are taken, including jewellery, computers, and televisions. In some cases car keys and cars are stolen."

"The public can help prevent this type of burglaries by keeping doors and windows closed when they're not in the same room. 

"Valuables, which include car keys, should be hidden or locked away."

Police also advise people to install tracking software into their gadgets to make it easier to recover stolen items.

"I'd always encourage people to activate tracking software on tablets and phones before they become victims, which help police track down the items quicker in the event they're stolen," she continued.

"Police do recover cars, jewellery and other belongings as a result of 'Find My iPhone' having been activated on a stolen phone."

Investigations are currently ongoing into these burglaries and witnesses or anyone with information is asked to contact Grays CID on 101.

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