The Palm Springs Police Department is continuing its 10th Annual Stuff a Cruiser Toy Drive this weekend, but Chief Tom Ceccarelli tells us the event is quite different that it has been.
"We'd set up a whole event. It'd be a day long event with things for the kids. It was a way for us to really interact in a positive way with the community."
But then 2020 happened and this year they've decorated a police cruiser and sent it out to various locations, where you can bring a new unwrapped toy and stuff it in.
"Those toys go to local charity organizations. One of them is Salvation Army and the other one is Adopt-A-Family. We've been working with both organizations for years and they distribute the toys to local children and families that don't have them for the holidays."
The cruiser will be at Tacos Al Carbon on Lake Worth Road from Noon to 2 p.m. Friday and Off Lease Only on Congress from 3 to 6 p.m.
Donations are also accepted at the police department, but the event wraps up on Monday.
On another note, Palm Springs Police released video Thursday, captured from a doorbell cam, that shows a woman pushing a baby stroller up to a home, jogging to the front door and grabbing a large package before pushing the stroller away. Police say the theft happened on Wednesday afternoon.
Chief Ceccarelli says you can expect to hear about more of these types of thefts because the pandemic has more people doing their Christmas shopping online.
"Online shopping is exploding and so many people are getting deliveries to their houses most of the time and people are stealing from, when items are left out, unoccupied residences."
He suggests you have those items delivered to you at work, if you're not working from home or ask a trusted neighbor to keep an eye out for your delivery.
The chief says the crime hasn't gotten rampant...yet.
"We're not seeing it probably as much right now, but I know we're not as close to the holiday yet. We haven't got as many as we probably usually do, but it will ramp up a little bit."
Investigators are working to identify the woman in Wednesday's crime.
Click Here to check out the video.
Photo: Palm Springs Police Dept.