Gardendale police arrested two men suspected in at least nine vehicle break-ins in the Lexington Park Subdivision on Sunday.

Brandon Lee Turner, 29, of Calera and Daniel Lee Hill, 24, of Birmingham, were found with stolen property in a Chevrolet Cavalier.

An off -duty Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputy saw the two men and thought they were suspicious, said Gardendale Police Chief Mike Walker.

Gardendale police were called in and the men were arrested after a short investigation led to the stolen property.

Police said there was no forced entry when the vehicles were burglarized. So far, all of the burglaries have been performed on unlocked vehicles.

“I’ve been in this job for three years and 90-95 percent of car burglaries are like this,” said Walker.

He said the usual method of operation is for two men to work together: One man stays with the getaway car, while the other simply tries car doors to see if they are unlocked. They steal items such as keys, laptops, purses, cameras, GPS units and even guns. Walker said Turner and Hill stole mostly GPS units, probably because they are easy to re-sell.

“I know it’s Gardendale, and people feel safe here,” said Walker. “But, even if you are at home and feel safe, lock your cars and houses and don’t keep things in your car.”

Fultondale police arrested a juvenile and Christopher Keith Terry, 18, on similar charges earlier this month. Terry and the juvenile were burglarizing unlocked cars, stealing garage door openers out of the cars and then burglarizing garages.

“That happens all over the county where thieves simply walk around checking for vehicles that are unlocked,” said Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Randy Christian. “We want our citizens to do everything they can to deter them. Simply taking a mere few seconds to remove any items from sight that are inside the vehicle and locking their car doors will go a long way toward that.”

The juvenile stole an unlocked Cadillac Escalade after finding a spare key in the dashboard. He was later caught by police, but not before totaling the car. Fultondale police said the two stole roughly $40,000 worth of property, including the Escalade.

“You’ve got to take steps to protect yourself,” said Walker. “Even though it takes an extra second, hit the button and lock the car.”

The sheriff’s office has charged Hill with three counts of unlawful breaking and entering of a vehicle and one count of theft of property. Turner has been charged with theft by receiving stolen property. Walker said more charges are pending.