Website helps police track down your stolen items

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- If someone broke into your house tomorrow, could you quickly provide police or your insurance company with pictures, serial numbers or receipts of everything that was taken?

There's a service that Houston police want you to know about that will help you do just that. On the website you can easily upload that information, store it securely, and have a better chance of recovering your belongings.

Houston resident Dominique McGhee is an armed robbery victim who was attacked as he walked home from a bar last July. His wallet, credit cards, and cell phone were all stolen.

"These guys are running after me with guns, push me to the ground, demanding my wallet, my phone, whatever else I had on me," McGhee said. "Seeing two guns pointed in your face was definitely was a wake up an experience."

Just 8 months later, thieves broke into McGhee's car and stole $500 in cash, along with the key to his house.

Police took reports in each case, but without serial numbers from McGhee's phone or photos of the items he lost, it is tough for officers to track down the stolen items.

"If it came from your grandfather or your grandmother, take a picture of it and describe it and put it on there. If things were to get stolen, gives us a better chance to find it," Houston police officer Todd Harris said. "Anything that is important to you, even if it isn't super expensive."

Houston police suggest using the website LeadsOnline.com to have a better chance of finding your stolen stuff. Police even use the website during their investigations.

The site is a database that keeps a record of your valuables. Officers use it combined with an internal search of what pawn shops purchased to track down stolen goods. The website is free to use and is password protected.