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GPS devices being placed in packages in Cuyahoga Falls to deter thieves

Thieves might want to think twice before swiping a package off the front porch of a home in Cuyahoga Falls.

Thieves might want to think twice before swiping a package off the front porch of a home in Cuyahoga Falls.

The city is launching a program to place small GPS tracking devices in packages, set up by the police department, in hopes of deterring thieves.

The packages will be placed throughout the city with a small tracking device inside. Officers will be able to track the package through an app which will alert the department when the package is moved from its original location.

"You can call us the package police or the porch police," Mayor Don Walters said.

Walters said the program, aimed at theft prevention, is similar to others across the country that have been successful, including in California.

"It's not entrapment," said Walters. "We just want people to know that this isn't the town to be stealing packages out of porches."

Police did not show WKYC what the tracking device looks like in order to keep it a mystery for thieves.

Walters said the department will also use the tracking device in other scenarios to track thefts across the city.

While the department hasn't noticed an increase in thefts, the program was put in place as a preventative measure to deter thieves.

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