The Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office along with the Santa Clara County Regional Auto Theft Task Force (RATTF) would like to remind citizens to not leave running cars unattended.
It’s quite common for many people to warm up their cars on a cold morning while leaving it unattended. The problem arises from car thieves. At the same time it is not uncommon to have a car with two or more people in it driving around neighborhoods looking for an unattended car being warmed up. Once they find an unattended car, one of the thieves will approach it to make sure it is unoccupied and steal it. A single person walking or jogging down the street, pretending to be out for some early morning exercise, could be the thief as well.
The same scenario can play out at any time during the day. Whether at your neighborhood convenience market, the Post Office or your Bank, if you leave your car running you are asking for it to be stolen.
Throughout Santa Clara County, four to five unattended running cars are stolen each day. “90% of these stolen cars are recovered,” stated Lieutenant Bruce Unger of the Santa Clara County Regional Auto Theft Task Force (RATTF), “Most of the thefts are committed by people looking for transportation for the day, or just for thrills. It’s definitely a crime of opportunity.”
Don’t be a victim of this easily preventable crime of opportunity. Sit inside your car while you warm it up in the morning and never leave a running vehicle unattended. Don’t let a few moments of convenience cost you your car.
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