Tag Archives: Police

The FBI Says Motor Vehicle Thefts Rose 11.8 Percent Last Year

2020 was a year of lockdowns and stay-at-home orders, but it appears criminals kept themselves pretty busy despite the coronavirus pandemic.

According to new statistics released by the FBI, motor vehicle thefts rose 11.8 percent in 2020 despite an 8.1 percent decline in overall property crime.

There’s no immediate explanation for the sudden increase in vehicle theft, but cars are pretty lucrative as they can be stripped for parts that can be sold for thousands of dollars. According to a study from the National Insurance Crime Bureau , a handful of the most frequently stolen 2016 model year vehicles have between 14 and 20 commonly replaced components that can easily be sold to unsuspecting buyers.

Also Read: Consumers Love Trucks And So Do Thieves As Ford F-Series Tops Most Stolen List

In the case of the 2016 GMC Sierra, that includes the headlamp assembly, the front bumper and a tailgate that are worth between $724 and $1,144. When all those common components are added up, they’re worth more than $21,000 and this makes the truck appealing to thieves who can easily sell parts on Craigslist, eBay and Facebook Marketplace.

Getting back to the latest data, the FBI says there were 727,921 “motor vehicle theft offense counts” last year. That’s up from 667,064 in 2019 and 712,236 in 2018. More strikingly, that’s the most reported since 2008. Of course, it’s worth noting all of the agencies eligible to participate in the Uniform Crime Reporting Program don’t send in their information, so the total picture isn’t completely clear.

Putting that caveat aside, there were 67,095 arrests for motor vehicle theft last year and most of them were males between the ages of 25 and 29. However, it is interesting to note there were six arrests of people under the age of 10 and 167 arrests of people 65 and older.

Scooter Rider Leads Police Chase Down Wrong Way Of Interstate Highway

A police chase ended miraculously well after a scooter rider behaving erratically led police on a multi-city chase starting in Danvers, Massachusetts, and ending in Medford just north of Boston.

CBS News followed the chase from its helicopter as the scooter was ridden down Insterstate 93 going the wrong way and weaving through oncoming traffic.

What started the chase is unclear, but the police say they chose to follow the scooter rider from afar in an attempt not to escalate the situation with the rider, who they believed to be suicidal.

Read Also: Scooter Rider Triggers Pile-Up While Trying To Flee From The Police

Police apprehended the rider on Mystic Avenue in Medford and CBS reports that EMS was there to attend to him shortly after the chase ended.

Of course, not only is the rider lucky to be alive, but everyone driving down the highway this morning was lucky, too as the rider’s erratic driving could easily have triggered an accident that could have been very dangerous for other motorists.

The chase ended at 11:00 am local time and the suspect is now in police custody.

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VW Golf GTI Driver Leads The Police To 150 MPH (240KM/H) Wild Chase

The driver of a VW Golf GTI has been arrested in the Netherlands after leading the police on a high speed chase.

In the lead-up to the chase, an officer pulled in front of the German hot hatch for a traffic stop along a highway exit road. Rather than stop, though, the driver of the Golf GTI quickly swerved back onto the highway and hit the throttle, quickly passing the police vehicle.

Read Also: 2021 VW Golf GTI Clubsport Announced With 296 HP And A Trick New Diff

Unfortunately for the driver of the Golf, the exit road that the police vehicle had taken soon reconnected with the highway and a chase quickly ensued. Dashcam footage from the police vehicle shows it hitting at least 240 km/h (149 mph) in their attempts to keep up with the VW.

The driver probably thought they had a good chance of outrunning the authorities, but after turning off the highway and entering a smaller side road, they were soon confronted by another police vehicle that was stopped on the road and waiting for them. Footage shows the two individuals being aggressively pulled from the Golf GTI and taken into custody.

Local media outlet Westlanders reports that the driver did not have a valid driver’s license. In addition, police found a large amount of money that the suspect tried to hide in the hatchback. Both the money and the car were seized.

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Running From The Police With A U-Haul Truck Is Not A Good Idea

If you want to try and outrun the police, the only real chance you’ve got is if you own a motorcycle or a performance car. Evidently, the driver in this video didn’t get the message.

This incident happened in Georgia back in March but we only recently came across footage of the chase thanks to the Forsyth County Sheriff’s Office channel on YouTube.

According to local police, they responded to a call from a local Walmart after a shoplifting incident involving a man. The suspect fled the scene of the alleged theft in a U-Haul truck and was heading northbound on GA-400.

Watch Also: See Houston Police Chase Dodge Charger SRT From Rowdy Texas Car Meet

At the start of the video below, the driver of the U-Haul truck intelligently pulls over and it looks like that is where the incident will end. However, shortly after officers get out of their vehicles and point their weapons at the man, he floors the accelerator and tries to drive away. As you’d imagine, a small U-Haul truck like this isn’t what anyone would call ‘fast’, so it’s not long before the police catch up and tail the man down the highway.

The driver continues to drive down the highway for quite some time, but before long, the officers successfully deploy a spike strip. Soon after, the front right tire of the truck falls off – but not even that stops the suspect. The driver subsequently exits the highway and while trying to cut through a section of grass near the highway, gets stuck in the dirt and tries to flee the scene on foot. Unsurprisingly, the officers soon arrested him.

The man was charged with theft by shoplifting, possession of cocaine, possession of drug-related objects, driving under the influence of multiple substances, obstruction of law enforcement officers, fleeing/attempting to elude for a felony offense, aggressive driving, and driving while license suspended or revoked.

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Police Release Video Showing Looters Stealing Chevrolets From GM Dealership In Missouri

Police in St. Louis, Missouri have released pictures and video showing a group of young men breaking into Don Brown Chevrolet and stealing three different vehicles.

The clip is only a minute and a half long, but it shows approximately seven different people running around the dealership and then breaking into it.

As another group of thieves apparently steals a Camaro and Tahoe, the team inside the dealership searches for keys. They rummage around multiple desks and can be seen entering a handful of vehicles inside the showroom.

Also Read: Looters Raid FCA Dealership Driving Off With Hellcats, Burn AMG GT In Mercedes Showroom

While the clip doesn’t provide much information, police said the thefts occurred shortly after 3 a.m. on June 2nd. Police added the group gained access to the building by shattering a window and then made off with three vehicles before they arrived.

The investigation is still ongoing, but security cameras managed to get a good look at several of the suspects. However, a number were wearing masks so identifying them could prove difficult.

The local Fox affiliate says the dealership was one of 55 business hit by looters and vandals following the death of George Floyd. He passed away on May 25th after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin had his knee on Floyd’s neck for more than eight minutes.

The station quotes St. Louis Director of Public Safety Jimmie Edwards as saying there were more than 200 people who were “committing criminal acts in St. Louis Monday night and into Tuesday morning” and only around 25 have been arrested as of last week.

PHOTO GALLERY

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Images St. Louis PD

San Leandro Rioters Stole 50 Cars From FCA Dealer, Including Nearly Every $80k Hellcat

Following our story earlier today about the ransacking of the ‘San Leandro Chrysler Dodge Jeep RAM SRT’ in California on Sunday night, more details on the aftermath have emerged.

In particular, the owner of the dealership revealed that upwards of 50 vehicles were stolen from the FCA dealership in the midst of wide-spread looting throghout the local Alameda County and other parts of the U.S.

Footage of the looting, triggered by civil unrest following the death of George Floyd while under police custody in Minneapolis on May 25, hit social media on Monday, showing several Dodge Challengers and Chargers being driven off the San Leandro dealer lot.

Read: Looters Raid FCA Dealership Driving Off With Hellcats, Burn AMG GT In Mercedes Showroom

San Leandro Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram

Speaking with CBS Local, the owner of the San Leandro Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram dealership, Carlos Hidalgo, said that around 50 vehicles were stolen from the showroom and the parking lot. This included “nearly every” powerful Dodge Challenger Hellcat and Dodge Charger Hellcat model, many of which appear to have been on sale with prices ranging from just under $60,000 to upwards of $90,000. Among the vehicles stolen was a 2020 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Widebody Daytona 50th Anniversary Edition painted white with a blue livery and a showroom price of $90,995.

“Right now we’re thinking 50 [vehicles] … Gone,” Hidalgo said. “We have trackers on them so we’re seeing which ones are out there. They’re running around everywhere. We tried calling the cops and they were too busy. They couldn’t respond. So, you know …”

How the looters gained access to the cars

Hidalgo says the rioters gained access to a key safe, hence why they were able to drive away with the vehicles. He had instructed employees to use the dealership’s cars to block the driveways after seeing looters ransacking a Nike store across the street. However, that was not enough to stop them from gaining access to the dealership.

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During the brazen theft, looters showed a total disregard for the vehicles and at one stage, drove a Hellcat parked in a corner into two other Hellcats on either side of it before stealing it. What’s more, a Hellcat displayed on the showroom floor was driven right through the glass front windows. Many of the Hellcat models stolen look to have been brand new and were still equipped with their front splitter guards.

“It’s not a cause for anybody. This is just bad thieves. It’s horrible,” said Hidalgo. “This is domestic terrorism brought upon to people that work. That’s not right.” Hidalgo added that the theft and damage caused to his dealership will hurt the 100 people that he employs who had already been struggling during the coronavirus pandemic.