INDIANAPOLIS — If you drive in Indianapolis or Marion County, you should be aware that your car might be a hot commodity for thieves.
The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department reports car thefts in Marion County have increased 38 percent so far in 2024 compared to this point in time last year.
The rising car thefts are an anomaly compared to the rest of IMPD's statistics, which show all other crime decreasing across Indianapolis. As a comparison, IMPD has counted more car thefts in 2024 (2,967) than all violent crimes combined (2,605).
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"When people see an opportunity, sometimes they may capitalize on it," said Officer Alyssa Hunter of IMPD. "When people are leaving their vehicles unlocked and running, or if you are not parking your vehicle inside of a secure location, that makes it an easier target for vehicle thefts to occur."
A breakdown of IMPD's year-to-date report:
- 2,967 auto thefts, compared to 2,139 in 2023 (38.7% increase)
- 72 murders, compared to 84 in 2023 (14.3% decrease)
- 213 non-deadly shootings, compared to 243 in 2023 (12.3% decrease)
- 532 robberies, compared to 651 in 2023 (18.3% decrease)
- 1,622 aggravated assaults, compared to 2,482 in 2023 (34.6% decrease)
- 2,605 total violent crimes compared to 3,641 in 2023 (28.5% decrease)
- 14,795 total crimes compared to 15,927 in 2023 (7.1% decrease)
Hunter said officers are using whatever tools are at their disposal to solve car thefts, which includes both stolen cars and attempts to steal cars.
"Officers are utilizing automatic license plate readers to see where vehicles are traveling," Hunter said. "We can see if a vehicle is stolen with these automatic license plate readers, so after seeing that, it allows us to send officers to that particular area to search for that vehicle."
