When you live in a close knit community like Bartow, it is easy to let your guard down and eventually become prey to some criminal act. Recently, you may have read about the skimming devices found on some of the local ATM machines. You may be thinking, “It can’t/didn’t happen to me” or “It’s not that big a deal.”

Well, if you were one of the victims that fell prey to these fiends, it’s a very big deal. Crime costs all of us eventually, whether it is increased taxes, insurance or fees. Eventually we all pay … loss of revenue has to be made up somehow.