Let's talk about stolen cars

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Happy Thanksgiving to everyone. Two days ago, my car was stolen from right in front of my apartment building overnight in this dump of a city. I have never had a car stolen before in my life. It is now reported stolen, and I wonder if I will ever see my car again.

I doubt they are even looking for it. Has anyone else ever had a vehicle stolen? Should I call the County and State police as well, not just Newark? Any chance the car will be recovered?
 
I've had a car stolen from my driveway as well.

The police will put it into their system but finding it seems to be a matter of luck. My car was found 29 days later in Dorcester, MA. It was sitting on a public street, with all the windows smashed out, no plates, and mismatched scrap tires on it. It hadn't rained in the past week so I doubt the police did much of anything with it.

The first question I was asked when I reported it stolen was if it was it was repossessed. This by the 100+ pound overweight officer that took my report. This was my first time dealing with the police on a matter like this and I was not impressed.

Side note: 1 hour after I reported my car stolen, 4 of the houses around mine reported other break-ins. Someone cleaned out the neighborhood.

After 30 days my insurance would have paid it off. As is the car was declared totaled but in the meantime the clock restarted while they appraised it, etc.

You may not want it back. Just saying.

Good luck and happy thanksgiving.
 
99% of the time police will not go out of thier way to search for a stolen car. Most are recovered abandoned with tow notice.

Best case they simply used it for what the needed and parked it a few miles away from the final destination or in a ally.

Worst case the drove it into a lake/river or parked it in the woods.

It really depends on the vehicle I believe most car theifs have no real interest in destroying a car. Most just need a vehicle and the owner left the keys in the ignition with the doors unlocked.

If your lucky it was a teenager who needed a car. If that's the case they more then likely drove it away from thier place and parked it so it can be recovered. Teenagers typically have no interest in destroying the car out of fear.

I believe they feel as long as they don't damage it and let it be recovered the police and owners will not push to find out who did it.


Always lock your doors and never keep your keys in (or on) your car.

If necessary keep a spare door key on a magnetic holder but don't keep the ignition key on the car.
 
You live is the stolen car capital of the world. No need to contact other authorities as your car is entered as stolen in the national database and you would just be wasting their time.
 
Originally Posted By: 3800Series
99% of the time police will not go out of thier way to search for a stolen car.


Not true in Newark and most other large American cities. They have entire police units that do nothing but look for stolen cars. Many agencies have gone to the trap method, where they no longer persue stolen cars, but box them in, or trap them, with a team of officers in banged up older undercover police cars.
 
Sorry to hear about your car. Unfortunately most of the time when a car is found it is because it has been abandoned after the parts the thief wanted have been removed. Hopefully you get lucky and the person who stole it gets pulled over while driving it.
 
What kind of car is it? That would go a long way in knowing the intent of the person that stole it. Could also help out in figuring out the likelihood of getting it back or not.

Z-
 
Originally Posted By: AandPDan


The first question I was asked when I reported it stolen was if it was it was repossessed. This by the 100+ pound overweight officer that took my report. This was my first time dealing with the police on a matter like this and I was not impressed.


What's wrong with them asking if it may have been repossessed? People frequently call to report their car "stolen" when it turns out it was a repo.

I was with a friend once when we were suddenly pulled over by several cops and ordered out of the car at gunpoint, placed in handcuffs, and put in the back of squad cars. Turned out that the car he bought had been reported stolen when it was actually a repo. The bank sent the car to auction, a used car dealer bought it, and my friend bought it from the dealer. That's why they ask it it may have been a repo, so things like this don't happen. Luckily for us the cops were able clear this up rather quickly, or we would have been sitting in jail for no reason.
 
I'll give another perspective. First as stated above, once your vehicle is reported stolen it is in a national database called NCIC, if an officer in Alaska pulls it over it will come back stolen. There is nothing another agency can do for you except perhaps recover it in their jurisdiction if located.

The overwhelming majority of stolen cars are simply recovered abandoned, many of them within a few days and many with minimal damage. That would be my hope for you and your vehicle. Some obviously get destroyed either maliciously or out of stupidity, and a few are actually stolen by real theft operations that will strip them. Those you are not likely to get back.
frown.gif


The police are definitely interested in recovering your car, preferably with thug inside but it is not easy. Just in KC the recent list of stolen autos exceeds 100 cars, and that list is "fluid" meaning it constantly changes as cars are newly stolen and previous stolen autos are recovered. That is an awful lot for an officer to look for especially considering stolen cars are just a tiny fraction of what police are expected to devote time to. And cars are obviously mobile, a car stolen just 20 minutes ago can easily be cruising the streets a full two jurisdictions away in that short time.

To add to the frustration prosecution of captured thugs is nearly non-existent here and from what I've heard that is not uncommon in larger metro areas. Prosecutors figure they have bigger fish to fry. Pretty much a no win situation for the police. We try anyway, because that's the way we are!

It sucks, I hate thieves, I hope you get your car back and so do the cops. Really.
 
They could use your car in a "smash & grab" where they ram a storefront window and a bunch of hoods go in and grab stuff. They usually leave the car at the scene of the crime.

There are sometimes 2+ entities who can declare a car stolen. Not just the registered owner but the leinholder too. This can have effects as subtle as blocking re-registration and hoping the deadbeat gets caught via his expired tags.

Good luck! I'd watch craigslist (yourcity.craigslist.org/sss) for your make/ model to see if it's being parted out.
 
My son had his Ford sedan stolen last year parked at his condo in a Gated Commuinty with a gate checkpoint!! (in and out) Marina Del rey, Ca. Never have heard a word about the car.
 
Not true, at least on my dept. My auto theft detectives (I spv the unit) as part of their daily duties, go out and grid various areas of the city looking around. We put out a daily hot sheet to Patrol listing stolen cars. And scooters.... in our state scooters are considered stolen vehicles and fall under the auto theft statute. That bogs my guys down big time because for every 1 stolen car/truck there are probably 10 stolen scooters. We generally recovered scooters via patrol usually runs across them or the victims track them down. I would like to be able to do more with scooters but it's a deluge and I have two auto theft detectives in a city of population around 130,000 which, again, would be adequate manpower if you take most of the scooter thefts out the equation. In large urban areas like where the OP lives, I can imagine the PD's are under staffed for these sort of investigations vs the volume of thefts coming in.

Hey I do have a fun story however. You know those key boxes on the window of new cars on dealer lots? Had a case where a high end new car of the muscle car variety on the lot had it's key left in the key box. Problem is, it's a proximity key fob, push button starting on the dash as well. Car was stolen with no forced entry imagine that. Car has been recovered, by the way, with less tread depth on the rears than it left with. I guess they drove it like they stole it ... ;~)

Originally Posted By: 3800Series
99% of the time police will not go out of thier way to search for a stolen car. Most are recovered abandoned with tow notice.

Best case they simply used it for what the needed and parked it a few miles away from the final destination or in a ally.

Worst case the drove it into a lake/river or parked it in the woods.

It really depends on the vehicle I believe most car theifs have no real interest in destroying a car. Most just need a vehicle and the owner left the keys in the ignition with the doors unlocked.

If your lucky it was a teenager who needed a car. If that's the case they more then likely drove it away from thier place and parked it so it can be recovered. Teenagers typically have no interest in destroying the car out of fear.

I believe they feel as long as they don't damage it and let it be recovered the police and owners will not push to find out who did it.


Always lock your doors and never keep your keys in (or on) your car.

If necessary keep a spare door key on a magnetic holder but don't keep the ignition key on the car.
 
Years ago my cousins boyfriend had a Honda Civic show car with a ridiculous amount of money spent on it.

While they were on vacation it was stolen, taken to a [censored] section of town and stripped to the shell right on the street. The car was recovered as a shell on cinder blocks, and of course no one in the neighborhood knew anything.
 
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Another tip. In crowded areas, don't lock via the key fob transmit. If possible, lock via the button on the door armrest such that shutting the driver door locks the car and sounds the chirp that way, avoiding broadcast of the key fob signal. This is in case anyone is nearby with a code grabber trying to capture fob codes.
 
Originally Posted By: KD0AXS
Originally Posted By: AandPDan


The first question I was asked when I reported it stolen was if it was it was repossessed. This by the 100+ pound overweight officer that took my report. This was my first time dealing with the police on a matter like this and I was not impressed.


What's wrong with them asking if it may have been repossessed? People frequently call to report their car "stolen" when it turns out it was a repo.

I was with a friend once when we were suddenly pulled over by several cops and ordered out of the car at gunpoint, placed in handcuffs, and put in the back of squad cars. Turned out that the car he bought had been reported stolen when it was actually a repo. The bank sent the car to auction, a used car dealer bought it, and my friend bought it from the dealer. That's why they ask it it may have been a repo, so things like this don't happen. Luckily for us the cops were able clear this up rather quickly, or we would have been sitting in jail for no reason.


They actually asked when the last time I changed the oil was. Really? Oil?

And the car is a 1995 Honda Civic.

I would post up more right now, but the families are joined together in Happy Thanksgiving and I will re-join you all later. May we all have happy days.
 
Originally Posted By: MalfunctionProne
Originally Posted By: KD0AXS
Originally Posted By: AandPDan


The first question I was asked when I reported it stolen was if it was it was repossessed. This by the 100+ pound overweight officer that took my report. This was my first time dealing with the police on a matter like this and I was not impressed.


What's wrong with them asking if it may have been repossessed? People frequently call to report their car "stolen" when it turns out it was a repo.

I was with a friend once when we were suddenly pulled over by several cops and ordered out of the car at gunpoint, placed in handcuffs, and put in the back of squad cars. Turned out that the car he bought had been reported stolen when it was actually a repo. The bank sent the car to auction, a used car dealer bought it, and my friend bought it from the dealer. That's why they ask it it may have been a repo, so things like this don't happen. Luckily for us the cops were able clear this up rather quickly, or we would have been sitting in jail for no reason.


They actually asked when the last time I changed the oil was. Really? Oil?

And the car is a 1995 Honda Civic.

I would post up more right now, but the families are joined together in Happy Thanksgiving and I will re-join you all later. May we all have happy days.



They probably asked that to have information to compare to the window oil change sticker if there was one, or to check with service shops to be able to catch the thieves if they happen to run your car to the closest jiffy lube to change the oil before driving it out of state. most oil change places put the VIN on file. it is another way for the police to help track the car if someone tries to service it. a lot of cars from the U.S end up in Central america.. A lot and many are hondas. I lived in El salvador for a year and their are so many honda civics there. they either came there as wrecks, or they were stolen..
 
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Cops here do not go out of their way on stolen vehicles.

I could see my motorcycle being stolen. Got to the phone and gave the 911 operator detailed directions about which direction the thief was headed.

It took the police department 4 hours to respond. It was at that time that the report with the plate number went out.

It was recovered when the thief crashed it. Hurt himself good and proper. Blood all over the right side of the bike.

His mother tried to sue me for his injuries. She got my work number (presumably from her son the thief...after all, he knows where he stole it from) harrassed me about "ruining his life, causing his injuries, running up medical bills, and pressing false charges" She hired an attorney who contacted me as well. Never heard another word from him once I sent in a copy of the Police Report.

The replacement plastic wasn't right. The bike was pearl white. The replacement pieces had more pearlescent coating. You could tell which ones were different under some street lights.

My '84 RX-7 was stolen too. Dallas Police contacted me several weeks later to advise me they had "recovered" it.
It was no longer a car. It was a burned out shell of what had once been an RX-7. Just the rear clip.
The lot actually got threatening. That if I did not pay them for recovery and storage, they would seize the car and sell it at auction.
"You want me to pay $775.00 for $50 worth of car? Do what you want with it. It's barely scrap metal now."

If my car gets stolen? I don't want it back now. I'd rather deal with a greatly de-valued insurance settlement than go through any of that again.
 
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