Glenview police have turned to social media advising residents how to avoid being the victims of car thefts or worse after at least six vehicles were stolen in the village in a week.
According to Glenview police, on July 12 a resident of the 100 block of Wilmette Avenue reported that their vehicle was stolen from the driveway around 4 a.m. and IPass records show the vehicle traveling in numerous towns following the theft.
On June 18 a Chicago resident reported their vehicle was missing after they left it running with the keys inside while they went inside a business in the 2400 block of Sanders Road. Surveillance cameras located the vehicle on Willow Road at I94 shortly before 5 a.m. the same day. A resident of the 1400 block of Huntington Drive reported their vehicle was stolen from their driveway overnight between June 11 and 12. A second vehicle was also entered, but nothing appeared missing.
Also on June 12 a resident of the 1000 block of Woodlawn Road, reported their vehicle was stolen from their driveway sometime overnight, and again on June 12 a resident of the 1600 block of Del Ogier Drive reported their vehicle was stolen from the driveway overnight. A neighbor provided video footage of a white Dodge Challenger (no plate info) dropping a passenger who took the vehicle just before 5 a.m. On June 6 shortly after 1 a.m. two vehicles were reported stolen from a driveway in the 2400 block of Bel Air Drive. Both vehicles were unlocked with the keys inside.
“Did you know an auto theft occurs every 33 seconds in the U.S. resulting in nearly one million vehicles being stolen annually?,” a posting on the Glenview Police Department Facebook page says. “This costs about $6.4 billion in related costs (higher premiums for everyone!!!) These stolen vehicles are often used to commit other crimes, up to and including homicides!”
The posting also says residents can do their part to prevent thefts by taking key fobs inside at night. “This not only prevents most reported thefts (in Glenview at least), but also prevents battery draining (for both the fob AND car!,” the posting says. “This includes vehicles in garages. Thieves will enter your garage (yes, attached garages too!) in order to look for key fobs. Do not underestimate them!”
Statistics from the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) show that there were 20,820 vehicle thefts in Illinois from January 2023 to July 2023 and that California had the most thefts with almost 100,000 during the same time period.
While some regions witnessed a decline in vehicle theft rates, others experienced a notable uptick, according to the NICB website. It says that urban centers and densely populated areas remained “hotspots” for auto theft, with metropolitan regions such as the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area reporting increased incidents compared to suburban or rural areas. The District of Columbia and Maryland each saw a drastic rise in thefts in 2023, with theft percentage increases of 64 percent and 63 percent, respectively.
And thieves have switched up the vehicles they’re targeting most, the NICB says. In years past, full-size pickup trucks tended to top the list, but that’s no longer the case. The “classic American pickup truck” has been dethroned by a company sedan when it comes to which vehicle is most frequently stolen and in 2023, the Hyundai Elantra took the top spot with more than 48,000 thefts reported nationwide.
“If you witness a theft occurring, call 911 and do not act as these thieves are known to be armed,” the Glenview police department Facebook posting says.
Brian L. Cox is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.
