FORT MILL -- Despite a recent shooting on Fairway Drive, crime has been dropping across the town, according to Lt. Ray Dixon.

That's what Dixon, the Fort Mill Police Department's crime prevention officer, told a crowd of about 100 residents gathered at the Fort Mill Middle School gym Thursday night for a community meeting he organized.

The meeting was called in response to the shooting. At approximately 5:15 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 24, someone fired several shots into a home on Fairway Drive through a side door from the carport. It appears the shooter was aiming at the homeowner, who went to check on a noise at a back door that woke him and his wife. At least three shots were fired, and although the homeowner said the bullets came close, he was not hurt.

Following the incident, Fort Mill Police heard from several other residents along Fairway that someone knocked on their doors early that morning, Dixon said.

Detectives are still investigating the case. Police brought in a York County Sheriff's Office canine unit to track the suspect, but he or she was not located. The victim could not provide a description to police.

"What we don't know is the suspect's gender, ethnicity or motive," Dixon told the crowd. "We don't know why he would go to several other houses and knock on the doors, get no answer, and move on."

Dixon said he thought it was a random, isolated act and he doesn't expect the person to come back. However, he had lots of advice for residents on how to be proactive and avoid becoming targets of criminals. Suggestions included using frosted window coverings available at most home improvement stores to prevent prowlers from peeking inside a home from the outside, or installing motion sensor-activated flood lights around the house.

"Criminals don't like light," Dixon said.

York County Sheriff's Office Sgt. Robbie Ellis also spoke to the crowd. Both he and Dixon said when someone is home alone and there is an unexpected knock on the door, to answer through the door, without opening it.

"[Tell them] 'we're not interested, please leave,' then call the police," he advised. Using the pronoun "we" implies more than one person is home, and by telling the person to leave, a police officer or sheriff's deputy can arrest that person for trespassing if he or she does not leave, Dixon said. The important thing is to make sure that person knows someone is home.

"Everyone knows it was our guy that was doing the home invasions in the county," Ellis said, referring to a Baxter resident arrested and accused of the crimes, including charges of home invasions in his own neighborhood.

"He'd go around and knock on doors, front side and back. He was doing it to see if anyone was home, and if he didn't hear anything he'd kick in the door."

In two of the invasions, children were home when a man broke in, but they had ignored his knocks because their parents had told them not to answer the door when they were home alone, Ellis said.

"We want people to know people are home," Ellis continued. "Where do you think most of the criminals are coming from? What's just north of us? Most people in North Carolina know that most people in South Carolina carry guns - and we shoot."

Most criminals are looking for an easy score, he said. When someone is home, the criminal's risk goes up. The sheriff's crime analyst team has discovered every home that suspect allegedly broke into had a front door with windows that provided a clear view into the home. That's why homeowners should take precautions to make it more difficult, if not impossible, to see into their houses from the outside.

The officers also asked the crowd to become good neighbors by being nosey.

"We need to work together. We have 33 officers and there are about 100 of you here," Dixon said. "If every one of you start looking out your windows and call us when you see a suspicious vehicle in the neighborhood or someone walking down the street at 2 a.m., it could make a world of difference."

Residents seemed to take the advice seriously.

"There were some good tips to prevent crime," Tim Daniels said after the meeting. "They really emphasized the neighbors watching out for things. If they do that I think it will be a good thing."

Longtime resident Charlie Boyette said, "The officers told the people here exactly what they should have done years ago. Neighborhood watch programs should have been in effect long ago. In Fort Mill, we have as good a police department as anywhere, and the county sheriffs are good, too, but they can't do it all by themselves. The people need to give a helping hand."

Dixon also repeated his offer as Fort Mill's crime prevention officer to all town residents to perform a free security survey at any home inside town limits. The detailed analysis of the current home security weaknesses will include suggestions on ways to address any deficiencies. He can be reached at 547-2022 to set up a home security survey or to answer questions.