Rochester Officers were called to a home on North Walnut Street earlier this week to take a report of an alleged phone scam.

The complainant told the responding officer that a male caller contacted her and claimed that he worked for Microsoft Windows. The caller told the complainant that a virus was detected on their machine and he began requesting personal information from the complainant. The complainant, suspicious of the caller, refused to disclose any information. After hanging up the phone, the complainant contacted Microsoft and was told that the man did not work for the company. Microsoft also told the complainant that they would never contact their customers and ask for personal information.

This was the second reported phone scam this week that Rochester Officers responded to. Building awareness by sharing this information with friends and family could prevent them from becoming the victim of similar scams. If you believe that you have been the victim of a scam, please contact your local law enforcement agency. To report a similar incident within the Village of Rochester, the officer on duty can be reached at 381-8351. Please dial 911 in case of an emergency.

The Rochester Citizen Corps is looking for individuals interested in volunteering their time to staff the phones in the Rochester Emergency Operation Center (EOC). The EOC, which is located in the Rochester Village complex, is opened when the emergency 911 lines for the Village of Rochester go down.

Call takers will staff phones in the EOC and notify emergency responders, police, fire, and public works of situations that require their attention. Volunteers will receive training for this position and will serve as the critical link between citizens in distress and emergency responders.

Individuals interested in volunteering are asked to submit an online application to the Rochester Police Department by Friday February 10, 2012. There will be a (3) hour training, Thursday February 16, 2012 from 6:00 PM – 9:00 PM.

Recently the department investigated an accident in which frost hindered a driver’s ability to see. Thankfully no one was seriously injured when the vehicle collided with a semi truck.

Many drivers clear off only a small area of their windshields to provide just enough visibility to see. However, when bright sunlight hits the remaining frost left on the windshield, it creates a light-amplifying effect that may lead to the driver being blinded.

Please allow a few extra minutes during your morning commute so that you can completely clear the windshield of your vehicle. This simple task could make the difference in you arriving safely at your destination.

The Rochester Police Department is now accepting applications to compile an eligibility list for the position of police officer. The testing process consists of a written examination, an oral interview, and an extensive background investigation. Applications are available at the Rochester Village Hall and on the department’s website. Applications will be accepted through January 13, 2012. For minimum requirements and more information on the testing process, please visit our application page.

The holiday season is quickly approaching and the Rochester Police Department would like to offer residents a few simple tips to help keep you and your family safe:

Before traveling over the holidays, stop mail and newspaper delivery so these items do not accumulate. Consider installing motion-activated lighting on exterior lights and utilizing timers on lights within your home. Complete a vacation watch form online and Rochester Officers will check your residence daily to ensure your home is secure; officers will contact you if there are any problems.

If traveling over the holidays, expect congested roadways. According to the Illinois State Police, high volumes of traffic are expected on interstates and roads beginning Wednesday, November 23rd through Sunday, November 27th. Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 24th is expected to be the busiest. When traveling, adhere to the rules of the road and obey posted speed limits.

When shopping, park in well lit areas and place valuables in your trunk or store them out of sight. Remain aware of your surroundings and keep track of your shopping cart.

If you have any questions, please contact the Rochester Police Department at 498-8443. Enjoy your Thanksgiving holiday!

In the summer of 2009 the Village of Rochester began experiencing a dramatic increase in burglaries. From June 1^st through August 31^st during the summer of 2008 to the summer of 2009 the Village went from just three (3) burglaries up to eighteen (18); this number increased again during the summer of 2010 to twenty-three (23). These crimes included residential burglary, burglary to a motor vehicle, and burglary (which includes burglary to an unattached garage, out building or business).  After further investigation and collaboration with other agencies, the department realized that suspects who were committing these offenses resided outside of the community. The majority of the Rochester residents targeted in these burglaries had vehicles with their doors left unlocked and garages where doors were left up, or unsecured. Understanding these factors, the department began to take steps to deter these crimes.

This chart depicts the number of burglaries the Rochester Police Department has experienced since the summer of 2001. The data measures the number of burglaries by year from June 1st through August 31st.

During the summer of 2010 the Rochester Police Department worked along side detectives with the Springfield Police Department to identify suspects living outside of Rochester responsible for committing these crimes. Realizing that other small towns were falling victim to this tactic as well, the Springfield Police Department formed a multi-agency task force to identify and apprehend this ring of burglars; Rochester’s investigator, Corporal Jon Schwartz, was a member of this task force. With the assistance of the Springfield detectives, Rochester officers were able to solve many of their crimes.

The department turned to the community in the spring of 2010 for help with preventing these burglaries. Officers began a new program called the “Community-Police Partnership Program,” which aimed to inform community members on what types of suspicious behavior to be looking out for, as well as offering advice on how to prevent residents from becoming victims. Alongside this initiative, the department began employing new resources to educate the community. New tools such as the department’s facebook page, twitter and nixle accounts, and a new website enabled officers to push up-to-date information out to the public in a timely manner. The Rochester Times and The State Journal Register were very crucial with helping the department to build the awareness of the public and gain a following on these sites, making them much more effective.

To further deter these crimes, officers began ramping up patrols and contact with the public in an effort to forge partnerships, harden the community, and enhance visible police presence within the Village. This was accomplished primarily through directed patrols and increased traffic enforcement. In addition to this, officers began notifying residents who left their garage doors up at night in an effort to prevent crimes of opportunity within the community. The proactive efforts of the officers proved highly effective and were well received by community members. These efforts have prompted the community to become more cognizant of securing their homes and reporting suspicious behavior to law enforcement.

With these new partnerships, resources and a little luck, the summer of 2011 proved very rewarding for the department’s prevention efforts. The number of burglaries dropped from twenty-three (23) during the summer of 2010 down to zero (0) this past summer. The department would like to thank the Rochester Times, the State Journal Register, and the Springfield Police Department for their continuing support and assistance; these crucial partnerships greatly enhance the department’s outreach and effectiveness. Rochester officers plan to continue prevention efforts this spring by introducing a short informational series of videos with tips on how residents can make their homes more secure and less attractive to burglars.

The Rochester Police Department would like to thank the members of the community for stepping forward and providing information about the hit and run incident that occurred on Taft Drive earlier this week.

Shortly after requesting the community’s help in locating the suspect vehicle, several tips came in which enabled us to locate a vehicle which may be involved. The vehicle and debris will be compared by analysts to determine if it is indeed the suspect vehicle.

Again, thank you for your support and partnership in keeping Rochester safe, we will keep the community updated as the case develops.

On Friday September 16, 2011 the Rochester Police Department is expecting a record turnout for the Rochester vs SHG football game.

School Parking should fill up quickly and we are expecting the adjoining neighborhoods to experience a dramatic increase in on street parking. We are asking fans to arrive early, car pool when possible, and ensure that they are legally parked.

RHS Student Council’s RocketPalooza will be going on from 4:00 – 6:30 PM on the tennis courts next to Rocket Stadium. Game kick off is scheduled for 7:00 PM.

The Rochester Water Department has issued a boil order for residents of Grove Park as well as residents living on the South Side of the 700 block of West Main Street. This boil order remains in effect until further notice.

West Main street is again open to normal traffic.

The Rochester Police Department will be teaming up with the Sangamon County Circuit Clerks Office in presenting an outreach program to the Rochester Community on Saturday, September 10th, from 10:30 AM until 1:30 PM. The program will be held in the Rochester Community Room located at the Village Hall/Library Complex at 1 Community Drive in Rochester.

The Police Department will be providing child I.D. cards and taking fingerprints of the children in attendance so that parents may have these valuable resources available to them. The police will also be handing out free gun locks to promote weapons safety within the community. The Circuit Clerk ‘s staff members will be available to explain the graduated driver’s license program, discuss orders of protection, no-stalking and no-contact orders, and provide information about civil and family court as well as how to use the circuit clerk’s website to access records.