Drivers stranded at airport after 300 vehicles stolen – and officials have a new plan to try to stop thefts
In order to counteract an uptick in vehicle thefts at an airport prior to the busy holiday travel season, a NEW police task team has been established.
More than 300 cars have been taken from the parking deck of Atlanta’s Hartfield-Jackson International Airport in 2024 alone.
The number is almost three times as many as the 95 vehicles that were stolen from the airport parking lot in 2023.
According to Atlanta police, while drivers wait for their loved ones’ planes to arrive or go, criminals target the airport.
According to Major Kelly Collier, carjackers can create a duplicate key in five minutes using cutting-edge technology that can be found online, and they then take off with the unattended cars.
Collier told Fox affiliate WAGA-TV, “We saw an increase in auto thefts at the beginning of the year.”
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“That equipment is available for purchase on Amazon.com. It’s a tiny gadget that you insert into the dashboard reader.
“And you can program a key fob within five minutes.”
Atlanta police have increased officer presence in the airport’s parking lots and terminals, as well as established a new task force, in an effort to address the problem.
The police also had undercover officers at the airport, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum told Atlanta News First.
Schierbaum told the source, “We’re taking away the welcome mat at our airport so you think you can come and take cars.”
When some citizens travel, they might not become aware that they have been threatened for days or weeks.
Organized Crime Strikes Airports: $5 Million in Stolen Cars
“We’ve taken a number of initiatives to turn this trend around.”
According to Schierbaum, the agency is putting in technology to stop robbers from stealing from one another.
ENHANCED AIRPORT MEASURES
“New anti-tailgating technology is being installed, so those individuals that come in to take a car can’t follow the vehicle they’ve just stolen out,” he said.
In the meantime, new safety measures for cars have been implemented by airport authorities.
In addition to installing more cameras and staff, the 30-minute time limit for cars in parking decks without payment has been lowered to 15 minutes.
The U.S. Sun was informed by airport officials that they have purchased two motorcycles for the purpose of patrolling the parking decks.
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“The APD Airport Section also utilizes its network of License Plate Reader (LPR) cameras to identify suspected auto theft suspect vehicles and respond to the parking decks to prevent suspects from exiting,” Collier told the U.S. Sun.
“Additional locations have been identified with the goal of adding more LPR cameras to enhance coverage at ATL.”
How to prevent vehicle theft
According to an auto insurance provider, there are ten measures to prevent your automobile from being stolen:
- Lock your doors. It makes it more difficult for thieves to access anything inside the vehicle.
- Keep your keys on your person. With smart keys and fobs, a car can be unlocked if the key is close by. If the key is inside or on your person, it can’t be unlocked.
- Don’t leave a spare key near the vehicle, as thieves know to look for them in common places like in a wheel well, under items in the driveway, or in the glovebox.
- Keep windows closed. If a window is open, thieves can manually unlock the doors.
- Park in well-lit areas, as it helps detour thieves if their actions are visible to passersby.
- If your vehicle doesn’t have one, consider an anti-theft alarm system.
- If you live in a high-crime area, consider an immobilizer device that utilizes a kill switch if the device doesn’t recognize an authorized key.
- Consider a tracking device to be able to keep tabs on your vehicle’s location if it’s stolen.
- Never leave valuables in the car, especially in a visible spot. Thieves know to look in the floor boards, passenger, or rear seats for valuables.
- Double-check before leaving the vehicle that it’s secure.
- To protect wheels and tires, especially aftermarket wheels, consider wheel lock lug nuts. They require a special socket to remove, so they’re impossible to remove without it.
Allstate Auto Insurance is the source.
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