Is your car safe in LA-area parking lots?
KNX Newsradio spoke today with a longtime Torrance resident who said a thief broke into his gym locker and stole his car keys, allowing them to take off with his Toyota Prius.
The man, Andrew, told reporter Nataly Tavidian that he parked his car at the 24 Hour Fitness at Crenshaw Boulevard and the Pacific Coast Highway last Saturday at 9 a.m. It was a typical routine for him since he became a member around a year ago.
What wasn’t typical is what he saw around an hour and a half later, when he was done working out. At his locker, a sturdy lock had been cut and all of his belongings had been removed – including his clothes wallet and car keys – and he then ran out of the building to find his car missing from the busy lot, Andrew said.
Luckily, he had his phone on him.
He told Tavidian that he alerted gym management, who then looked up video footage that he said showed a person enter the gym with a bolt cutter. In a GoFundMe page seeking $12,000 to help recover the car, Andrew said that the Torrance Police Department told him that a suspect linked to this incident has been targeting multiple gyms in the area. Police said Toyota Prius cars are targeted as well, he said.
“This incident is not just about losing my car – it’s about the violation of my sense of security and the emotional toll it’s taken on me and my family,” said the GoFundMe page. “With the holidays approaching and financial burdens mounting, this has been an incredibly tough time for us.”
He also warned other gym-goers in the Torrance area to be extra careful. Andrew told Tavidian that police recommend putting trackers on cars so they can be easily traced if stolen.
Throughout California, 202,893 vehicles were stolen last year. That represents a total estimated total value of $1.8 billion and a 2.2% increase over 2022.
“The average rate of vehicle thefts in 2023 was approximately one vehicle every three minutes with an average loss of $8,872 per stolen vehicle,” said the California Highway Patrol.
