Every 15 minutes: Auto thefts on the rise (Part one of a two-part series) Christiane Helbig
Ebbtide Reporter
The alarm went off at 5:40 a.m., and we forced ourselves out of bed. My husband and I performed our morning routine of showering, dressing and packing lunch. While my husband was locking the apartment door, I proceeded down the first set of stairs. I looked toward our car as I always do.
"The car is not there!"
My husband gave me a puzzled look and asked, "What? What do you mean?"
Our car was always parked in its assigned parking spot in front of our apartment building. There was no other place to look. We did not even go all the way down, but turned around and went back into our apartment to call the police. I was shaking. I could not believe that our car had been stolen.
It was Jan. 8, 2002, and what seemed to begin like a normal day became the beginning of our auto-theft odyssey. We learned the hard way that just locking a car is no longer sufficient to keep it from being stolen. Research shows that many people are not worried about the safety of their cars. However, vehicle theft is a serious problem of national proportions, and no more so than in Washington state and King County.
While the booming economy in the 1990s caused the national car-theft rate to decrease, the economic downturn since the end of the 1990s has reversed the trend. Auto theft is on the rise again according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation 2000 Uniform Crime Report. Worse, the Washington State Patrol (WSP) reported an increasing number of stolen cars throughout the last decade. In fact, every 15 minutes a vehicle is stolen in Washington. The majority of these auto thefts occur in the counties surrounding the Puget Sound. King, Pierce and Snohomish counties represent more than 70 percent of the total number of stolen vehicles in the state. The National Insurance Crime Bureau found that the top 10 metropolitan areas for vehicle theft, which include Tacoma (seventh) and Seattle (ninth), are located near or within reach of ports and the Canadian and Mexican borders.
Shoreline followed Washington's trend. In 2001, 229 vehicles were stolen within the city limits. In 2002, the number of stolen vehicles increased to 256. However, SCC's parking lots appear quite safe. In 2001, the King County Sheriff's Office recorded three vehicles were stolen out of the lots. In 2002, two cars were stolen.
A survey of 41 SCC students revealed that 12 percent had vehicles stolen at least once. Interestingly enough, a survey by Progressive Insurance, which queried 567 people, showed that 11 percent reported stolen vehicles. While the SCC student survey is a small sampling, it appears to be a valid representation of the amount of auto theft and clearly indicates that vehicle larceny is a prevalent problem.
Thieves' favorite vehicles
In 2001, the top three stolen vehicles in the United States were Toyota Camry, Honda Accord and Honda Civic, respectively. In the Seattle-Bellevue-Everett metropolitan area, the same three cars topped the list with the Honda Accord in the No. 1 spot and the Toyota Camry is in third. The 2002 King County Crime Report indicates that the Honda, with 24 percent, and Toyota, with 17 percent, are the most stolen cars in Shoreline. Results from the previously mentioned SCC survey showed that two out of the five cars reported stolen were the Toyota Camry and one was a Honda Accord.
One reason for the popularity of Toyotas and Hondas among thieves is the availability of "shaved keys." According to Michael Williams, a detective with the King County Sheriffs Office. "If you have a key to a 1984 Toyota Camry, and you shave it down the right way, you can start every Toyota Camry from 1984 to 1990."
Furthermore, 2001 statistics show the Honda Accord as the most-sold car, followed by Toyota Camry and Honda Civic in the United States. Therefore, it is a simple matter of economics for auto thieves. More of these vehicles are necessary to satisfy the market for illegal parts and export to other nations.
Careless car owners contribute to theft
One might assume that people's common sense causes them to always lock their car, roll up the windows and not leave valuables visible in their cars. However, statistics prove differently.
According to a survey by Progressive Insurance, 55 percent of those surveyed said they leave their car doors unlocked, and 34 percent leave the windows open when leaving their vehicle unattended. Six percent leave the key in the vehicle when leaving their car.
The survey among 41 SCC students shows a greater level of care: 73 percent of the students always close their windows and lock their cars. However, Security Sgt. Becky Gibler, SCC Security and Safety Office said this isn't the case for many students.
"I see purses, cell phones, money, textbooks, expensive jackets and shoes. You just would not believe what people leave lying right in the open," she said, also noting that a lot of the people who leave belongings visible in their cars also have their windows cracked open or leave the doors unlocked.
In the cold winter months, people like to start their cars and let them warm up while they run back inside to get ready to leave. A running, unattended and unlocked car is saying, "Steal me." In January 2000, 18 cars which had been left running and unattended while warming up had been stolen within two weeks in South King County. Tacoma Police is now punishing this "open invitation" with an $86 fine. Any police department can write this citation if your car is parked on the street to warm up. Driveways are OK.
For thieves, finding a car with the key in the ignition is a wonderful invitation to steal. The car is just waiting for them, and no forced entry is necessary. Williams knows of a teenage "chronic auto thief" who has probably stolen 20 cars in the last three years using this method.
"He steals vehicles always at the same time in the morning where people come outside, turn their car on to warm it up and go back inside," Williams said. "He has never broken a window to get in, he's never popped the lock, nothing."
Who is stealing your car?
The young "chronic auto thief" is an example of a serial auto thief. They usually steal cars to drive around in and joyride until the gas is gone. These thieves will look for the easiest car to steal. Cars without an alarm or anti-theft devices are preferred. Williams compared it to burglar alarms in houses: "You have some [houses] that have a burglar alarm and some that don't. If they [the thieves] come over and see that your house is alarmed, they will go on to the next one."
Williams estimates that 90 percent of vehicle thefts are done by these casual thieves. According to the King County Prosecuting Attorney's Office, most of the offenders are unlicensed juveniles looking for a quick thrill and gain of personal property such as car seats, stereos and cell phones. Nationwide FBI data from 2000 shows that 68 percent of 9,291 arrestees for incidents where only one vehicle was stolen were between 12 and 24 years old.
At the other end of the spectrum are professional auto thieves who will go to great lengths to steal a vehicle by disabling an alarm or cutting the steering wheel to get anti-theft devices off. This professional group can be split into two categories: chop shops and shipping gangs.
Williams described the groups who ship vehicles abroad as "the ones before you wake up in the morning, your car is already on its way to Russia." Chop shops either use parts from stolen cars to repair other cars or they try to resell the stolen vehicle for profit. Members of chop shops steal a vehicle and strip it. They put the remaining shell out on the street, so the police will find it. The owner's insurance company then declares the shell a total loss and auctions it. The group who stole the vehicle goes to the auction to buy the shell back for maybe $200. They take it back to their chop shop and put everything back together. After being reassembled, the car is registered and re-licensed and can be sold as a legal vehicle. They are sometimes able to sell such a vehicle for $15,000 or $20,000.
The professional car thieves who ship vehicles abroad are stealing high-end vehicles such as Porsches, Lexuses, Mercedes, BMWs and SUVs. Williams explained that it is like the movie "Gone in 60 Seconds." The thieves receive a list of the wanted vehicles and have a deadline by which time these cars have to be in the container ready to ship. According to Williams, this happens rather infrequently, maybe every two or three years, in King County. Detective Ron Huston, Lake Forest Park Police Department, also states that chop shops are not very common. The majority of stolen cars are used as a tool of transportation and for joyrides.
Among the professional car thieves, a rather new technique of legalizing stolen cars has become popular: car cloning. This technique involves copying a vehicle identification number (VIN) from a legally owned and documented vehicle and putting it on the stolen car.
Williams offered this example: the thief wants to steal a 2000 Ford Explorer. He goes to Canada and finds a 2000 Ford Explorer and copies down the VIN. After he returns to the United Staetes, he steals a 2000 Ford Explorer and creates a fake VIN plate using the Canadian VIN, which he places in the stolen vehicle. The stolen car is now a "clone" of the original vehicle and can be legally licensed and registered.
"The Canadian VIN registration system does not connect to the U.S.' system," Williams explained. "Now you have two vehicles with the same information driving around in the world except one is in Canada and one is in the U.S."
It is difficult to know who steals a car. Gibler observed that thefts on the SCC campus seem to occur on days when the local high schools have only half days, which leads her to the assumption that they might be responsible for these crimes. However, it is impossible to tell unless someone is caught in the act. One and a half years ago, two men were arrested in their car. Police found stolen items and parts from other cars in their vehicle. Gibler stated it was not clear if they attempted to steal a car and were interrupted or if they were just prowling cars. These two men happened to be in their 20s and not from this general area.
What locations are popular?
While the SCC parking lots appear relatively safe, apartment complexes and major streets are common theft locations. Both in 2001 and 2002, approximately 40 percent of vehicle thefts in Shoreline occurred in apartment parking lots. These parking lots are usually easily accessible and offer a great variety of cars. Williams explained that another important factor thieves consider is quick access to major roads and freeways. This explains why more thefts occur in close proximity to Interstate 5 and major streets such as Aurora Avenue and Ballinger Way.
King County statistics show that more vehicles are recovered than stolen in Shoreline. The King County 2001 Annual Report shows that a total of 3,427 vehicles had been stolen. Only 1,223 vehicles stolen in King County were recovered within the limits of the county. Recoveries made for other agencies amounted to 1,854. This data indicates that many vehicles are not recovered within the area where they were stolen. According to the FBI, 77 percent of all stolen vehicles are recovered, of which 50 percent are found within the first three days after their disappearance. The FBI also found that the first few days after the theft occurred are critical in recovering stolen vehicles. The more days pass, the smaller the chance of recovery. If a stolen vehicle has not been recovered after six days, there is only a 19 percent chance that it will ever be recovered.
To find out how authorities follow up on vehicle thefts and how owners can prevent these personal tragedies, see part two of "Every 15 minutes" in the May 9 edition of the Ebbtide.
