PICTURE THIS: A Brooklyn cop yesterday snaps a photo through a car window as part of an operation to warn drivers who leave valuables visible. (
)
Dopey Brooklyn drivers who tempt thieves by leaving valuables in their cars are getting a remedial class in common sense from the NYPD.
Community-affairs cops from the 76th Precinct — which includes Carroll Gardens and Cobble Hill — walk down the leafy streets with cameras and take photos of items through car windows.
The precinct will then run the license plates and send the owner a flier that says, “If we spot it, so can thieves” along with the picture.
“We’re trying to think outside the box,” said Capt. Jeffrey Schiff, who announced Operation Spot It To Secure It at a community council meeting on Tuesday night.
“The whole idea is to prevent the crime from happening in the first place.”
The operation will launch next week, but cops did a trial run yesterday — and got a range of reactions from drivers and residents.
Harry Robles, 49, said he was anxious about police checking out license plates on his street.
“When they run the plates, everything comes up — like summonses or tickets,” he said. “I know how cops work. There’s something else going on.”
Jerry Armer, who has lived in Cobble Hill for more than 40 years and serves on the precinct’s community council, said it’s “clever.”
“If somebody considers it intrusive, they should consider that they would feel much worse if their car window was broken — and whatever is in the seat was taken,” he said.
Police will also visit apartment buildings and brownstones in the precinct and check vestibules for broken, open or unlocked doors.
If no one is home, they will mail fliers to the building as well as anti-crime pamphlets.
The community is one of the safest in Brooklyn, and overall crime is down 40 percent in the past 28 days.
A Web designer named Pascal, who declined to give his last name, was surprised to see cops at his Carroll Gardens doorstep yesterday.
“We have gotten in the habit of leaving our doors open,” he said.
“The thing I like most about this neighborhood is that I can head to the grocery store without bothering with my keys.”