Frustrated with a rash of car break-ins, a group of Hawaii Kai residents banded together to battle crime in their neighborhood.

Mariners Ridge resident Brian Kirsch persuaded fellow residents to join nextdoor.com, a website that gives neighbors a platform to communicate with one another concerning a multitude of issues. Since the beginning of the year, more than 200 Mariners Ridge residents have joined the website to address crime in response to the spate of break-ins.

Through posts, neighbors shared information about recent car thefts and break-ins that have rattled the tranquil community.

“They hit the whole block,” said Kirsch. “We got more and more frustrated.”

Kirsch said he wanted to share how he and his neighbors have been working together in an attempt to protect their property to encourage other neighborhoods facing the same plight.

Neighbors started documenting theft-related incidents. About a dozen residents attended a Hawaii Kai Neighborhood Board meeting in July, where they presented information to police on the rash of break-ins and still photos of a culprit allegedly stealing items from a vehicle’s trunk. Their efforts led to the arrest of a 20-year-old man in connection with a theft.

Following the car break-ins in recent months, Kirsch installed motion sensor lights and wireless security cameras fronting his home with some of the equipment pointing toward the roadway. “I didn’t really want to live this way,” he said.

Kirsch said the car break-ins have occurred between 1 and 4 a.m.

Neighbor Colleen Elfalan, who has lived at Mariners Ridge for more than 30 years, said the recent break-ins forced her to vigilantly check that all the doors to her home are locked, as well as her car.

Like Kirsch, the Elfalans installed wireless security cameras and motion sensor lights fronting their home in an attempt to deter thieves.

“That’s really what they steal, that feeling of security,” said Elfalan, 64.

Police Lt. Gary Sunada of District 7 reminds residents to make sure doors are locked and not to leave any valuables in plain sight inside their vehicles.