One-Woman Citizen Watchdog
ROCK HILL, S.C. – It started where it so often does these days: on Facebook. Kristin Wilson of Rock Hill hashtagged the post as a “public service announcement” and wanted to know “where is the news coverage?” Someone tagged WCCB News @ Ten anchor Morgan Fogarty in that post and Morgan answered Kristin’s call.
They met Friday for an interview. Kristin tells her, “Everybody’s kind of on guard, making sure that they’re protected.”
Her post has become an unofficial log of recent alleged crime in her neighborhood and the surrounding area. It details almost two dozen incidents, and it’s been shared 725 times so far. It started with her own story. 10 days ago, someone went into her car, in her driveway, while she was home. “We heard a noise and the our dogs began to bark,” she says. And, “When we came outside, we couldn’t see anybody or anything and I was missing a lap top (computer).”
A friend then told Kristin about a neighbor who’d also been targeted by thieves. And then Kristin heard about a woman across the street; same thing. And another friend told her about their house having the doors kicked in.
And online, people started commenting. “Most of them, I don’t even know,” says Kristin.
She does know Mac and Julie Cornwell, who live 7.5 miles away. Nine days ago, someone stole a dirt bike out of their carport. “Being right where it was is what’s alarming, because it was close to the house,” Julie says.
The talk of crime in the area is making Julie feel uneasy, she says. “I don’t see how all of it can be a coincidence. I just don’t see. It’s just too much all at once,” she says.
The York County Sheriff’s Office put out a post Thursday saying in part, “In the past three months we have investigated only three burglaries in the Mt. Gallant Road area and 2 in the Tirzah Road area. No “string of armed robberies” as what is being circulated around on Facebook and Twitter.
Kristin knows she may not have used the correct term to describe the crimes, but, she points out: “A thief is a thief. I just wanted people to know and to be safe.”
The York County Sheriff’s Office says there have been 67 car break-ins in the past month and a half. As always, they want you to call them if you see anything suspicious in your neighborhood.
