SEVEN out of 10 cars are stolen with their own keys – a statistic that’s alarming police. Crime Stoppers Victoria is urging drivers to consider how easy they are making it for thieves by leaving their keys in accessible areas of their homes.
Next month, Crime Stoppers Victoria together police, National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council, Department of Justice, and Neighbourhood Watch, will begin a community awareness campaign to highlight what they call crimes of opportunity.
Thieves take advantage of unlocked doors and open windows in homes and cars – especially where they can see valuables inside. Also, 70 per cent of all late model cars stolen in Victoria are taken with their own keys, 45 per cent are stolen from outside the home and 25 per cent are stolen from streets nearby.
There is a strong link between home burglaries and car thefts, so police say consider where you leave your keys, improve your home’s security and, if you are a victim of car theft, call 000.
Information from the community helps solve crime, and residents should get behind the campaign and report what they know, police say.
Crime Stoppers is confidential and doesn’t track IP addresses. “We don’t want to know who you are; we just want to know what you know,” a spokesperson said.
First published in the Chelsea Mordialloc Mentone News – 19 December 2018