Thieves Targeting Cars Left To Warm Up During Winter

WARREN (WWJ) - In the past week, five vehicles have been stolen in the city of Warren.

Police Lt. Dan Beck tells WWJ Newsradio 950 it's happening when people warm up their car in the morning, or when they make a quick stop for a hot cup of coffee on their way to work.

"People are leaving their car running and unattended in their driveways and bad guys are driving around the neighborhoods looking for cars that are running. It's a crime of opportunity," said Beck.

And just like that, the car seemingly vanishes into thin air.

"Normally the car is just left unlocked. The bad guy sees the car is running and nobody is in it, he tries the door and gets in it and steals the car," said Beck.

But leaving your car running and unattended so it can warm up isn't just a bad idea, Beck said it's illegal.

"I would recommend never leaving your car running and unattended. In fact, you can be issued a ticket for that," he said.

Realistically though, Beck knows some people will ignore the warning and leave their car running unattended anyway.

"If they have to do it, they should lock the car and use a spare set of keys to unlock it, and they should keep their headlights on and they should keep their house lights and porch light on while they're warming the car up," he said.

"Normally when it gets really cold, we get more of them. But, it's still a problem throughout the winter and the cold period here in Michigan where people leave their car running and unattended," he said.