Moroni and Ephraim get top marks as ‘burglary safe zones’ in Utah
Robert Stevens
Managing editor
11-17-2016
A security firm used FBI crime statistics to put together a ranking of the 10 cities in Utah with the lowest burglary rates per capita, and two Sanpete cities made it on the list.
Protect America, a Texas-based home security and automation company, named Moroni and Ephraim “burglary safe zones.” Protect America based its rankings off of a yearly report from the FBI called the Uniform Crime Report, which is based on the nationwide crime statistics from 2015.
Moroni City was rated as the second safest city in Utah in regard to home burglaries.
“I wouldn’t attribute our ranking to just one factor,” Moroni City Mayor Luke Freeman said. “We have a really good police department. They respond as quickly and appropriately as they can when an issue arises. When they are not in the area, we work very well with the county. Other than that, we have a good group of citizens who watch out for each other and their properties. They help raise the alarm if something happens. When it comes down to it, it’s just city resources trying to do the best they can and our residents doing the best they can.”
Ephraim City placed No. 7 on the list.
“I think the ranking is a combination of things,” Ephraim City Manager Brant Hanson said. “We live in a culture that respects one another’s property. We just have this really good culture here in Ephraim and all over the Sanpete Valley.”
Hanson also attributes Ephraim’s ranking to good local law enforcement efforts.
“We have an outstanding police department who do a great job following up and having a presence,” Hanson said. “Not only are they out there enforcing laws, but they are establishing relationships.”
Moroni and Ephraim earned their rankings on the Safe Zone listing by having low numbers of burglaries in comparison to their populations.
According to the listing, Moroni had one reported burglary during 2015 and a listed population of 1,457.
Ephraim scored No. 7 on the Safe Zone list by having eight burglaries with a population of 6,546.
Protect America ranked Kamas as the city in Utah with the least burglaries per capita last year. The city claimed the number one spot by having one burglary during the year and a population listed as 2,033.
“Our hope in creating these Top 10 lists is to raise burglary awareness and offer home security tips to communities that need them,” said Zane Schwarzlose, community liaison for Protect America.
The Protect American ranking states that they are only able to rank cities who have had their crime data submitted to the FBI by local law enforcement.
To view this list or Protect America’s list of the 10 most likely places for your home to be burglarized in Utah (none of which were in Sanpete County), visit http://www.protectamerica.com/home-security-blog/safe-and-sound/2016-utah-burglary-stats-burglary-safe-zones-hot-spots_12068.
