PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Carjackings continue to be a big problem in Philadelphia, according to police, and the city is well on its way toward surpassing last year’s total.
As of Wednesday, there have been at least 768 carjackings in Philadelphia in 2022. That number is quickly approaching the 854 that occurred in all of 2021.
Officials expect the number of carjackings to grow to about 1,300 by the end of 2022.
On Labor Day alone, there were seven carjackings or attempted carjackings in Philadelphia. Most of them took place between 6 and 8 p.m. across five different police districts.
Police on Wednesday released footage of a carjacking that occurred on Aug. 7 in West Philadelphia. It was around 6 a.m. when two men approached a parked white Lexus at 62nd Street and Cedar Avenue. Police said the men forced the driver out of the car and pointed a gun at him. The men then got in and drove south on 62nd Street.
“I could have been the person,” West Philly resident Jennea Ellis told NBC10. “I drive a Lexus and I leave at 6 in the morning with my child. It could have been me.”
Police urge people to give up their keys during a carjacking, as not to risk escalating the situation.
“A neighbor asked me what would I do if that happened or I see somebody trying to break into my car at night,” community leader Ronald Dennis told NBC10. “He’s like, are you going to run out there and stop them? No! It’s a car. My life is more valuable than a car.”
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