MILWAUKEE — The Milwaukee Police department is sounding the alarm about vehicle thefts heading into winter. Officers said the surge in reported thefts is headlined by three makes of vehicles.
- Honda
- Hyundai
- Kia
The three together made up nearly 60 percent of vehicles reported stolen in Milwaukee during the month of November.
With cooler weather ahead, Milwaukee Police said they are noticing the trend. Post on Facebook’s “Stolen Cars Milwaukee” group back up what police are saying, with a number of recent posts describing victims’ cars as one of the three.
"I thought I was going crazy. But no.. it was stolen,” said Eray Durson, who said his Honda Civic was stolen along Oakland Avenue nearly two weeks ago.
Since then, another Civic like his sits next to the spot where Durson’s car was stolen from with a tow notice on it.
“My theory is they dumped that car and stole my car,” Durson explained.
Police said the stolen cars are often used in other crimes they investigate. Many of them come to them with broken steering columns. That's how the thieves would start the car: the ignition and starter are within the column oftentimes.
“Some of these cars, as they’re taken, they’re being used for other crimes. Such as reckless driving and vehicle pursuits,” said Sgt. Efrain Cornejo.
Police are also urging people to not leave their cars running to warm them up or to consider using a steering wheel lock.
