ELMIRA, N.Y. (WETM) – Safety is at the top of the list as the Holiday Season unravels.

“This is the time of year that we asked residents to kind of keep a better lookout for their property and their neighbors,” said Anthony Alvernaz, Chief of Police, Elmira Police Department

Each Holiday season Santana and Mrs. Claus make their appearance and, then you’ll find the grinch who steals packages.

“We have people who like to check on doors and packages that left on front porches,” said Alvernaz

With residents expecting packages during the holiday season, people are purchasing doorbell cameras to protect their porches.

“Keep an eye out for packages coming in while you’re at home,” said Alvernaz

Having a secondary location that you can send your packages to may also serve you well. Protect your packages using tracking information.

“We always ask people who can afford it to pay for the extra service and the insurance. That gives us a little bit more information. Then we can dive a little bit deeper if something does come up missing based on that tracking information.” said Alvernaz

The best way to combat the porch pirating issue is to keep an eye out for your neighbor and track your presents to keep your local grinch away.