Minneapolis police reported on Friday car thefts city-wide had gone up 90-percent in the first three weeks of 2020 compared to 2019.
262 cars were reported stolen between January 1 and January 24 according to police. Police spokesman John Elder says nearly three-fourths of the cases were preventable.
"73-percent of these autothefts were cases where the vehicle's owner left it running with the keys in the ignition," he said. "Other cases involve people leaving key fobs inside their vehicle. Criminals walk by, lift the door handle, and rummage through the car before stealing it."
Food delivery drivers have also been targets of autothefts while outside of their vehicles for an extended period of time.
• HELP PREVENT THE RISE OF AUTO THEFTS CITYWIDE • 262 auto thefts have occurred so far in the first 3 weeks of 2020, which means about 13 cars stolen per day. Full article with tips on how to prevent this: https://t.co/s9WDmdVtjz pic.twitter.com/4x2Bt7Zwqy
— Minneapolis Police (@MinneapolisPD) January 24, 2020Elder said car thefts have led to an increasee in other crimes, including hit-and-runs, robberies, and even kidnappings.
"Thieves will get into a running car and take off only to realize there's a child inside," he said. "This acts as an even greater reminder to never leave your child unattended inside of a car."
Minneapolis' 3rd Precinct has seen the highest number of reported car thefts while downtown Minneapolis has seen the least.
Police say criminals continue to target vehicles at gyms and daycares where the likelihood of swipping valuable items is higherr.
