York-Poquoson, Va. - When it comes to staying in the know about crime in York County neighborhoods, many people say they check the York-Poquoson Sheriff’s Office Facebook page every single day.
That's how Kate Jones says she found out about two home break-ins this week in the Greenlands Subdivision where she lives.
“It's very up to the minute updates and the person who does it is very funny,” said Jones.
Incorporating humor in their Facebook posts is something Sheriff Danny Diggs says they do on purpose.
“Who wants to read some report that's full of police jargon that you might not understand half of it,” said Sheriff Diggs.
Take Wednesday morning's post about the home break-ins for example.
Instead of describing the culprits as "suspects" as we typically hear, the writer refers to the unknown person or persons responsible as “knuckleheads.”
Those "knuckleheads," deputies warn, forced their way through the back door of two homes on Richter Lane, ransacked them and took off with mostly electronics but also a gun and jewelry.
“There were two burglaries in two days on the same street we figured, hey, we want to get this out very quickly,” Sheriff Diggs explained. “Within two hours we hit 2,300 views of this particular post.”
The sheriff believes the way in which they write these posts and push them out to the public has really driven a lot of traffic to their page. He says in just a couple of months they doubled their number of followers.
Readers like Jones say they appreciate the creativity. But, there’s just one thing she really wants to know: “It sounds like she's a woman but they won't say who it is that does it,” said Jones.
Sheriff Diggs says that will remain a mystery, at least for now.
“We get so many comments and questions on who writes that stuff. I don't write it but somebody else here on staff does.”
In the meantime, deputies are asking residents in the Greenlands subdivision and surrounding areas to keep their eyes open for suspicious activity in the neighborhoods.
If you observe anyone that does not belong or any other suspicious activity, please call 911 immediately.
If you have information specifically regarding the home break-ins, call the crime line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.
