St. Louis area police departments team up to prevent car thefts

Many U.S. cities have seen a major spike in car thefts over the last few years. From 2020 to 2021, the number of reported vehicle theft offenses went up over 30%. 

Many cities are reporting that it’s not slowing down in 2022. Cities like Seattle, Chicago, Philadelphia and New York City have already seen a major increase in car thefts so far this year.  

In St. Charles County, which is in Eastern Missouri outside of St. Louis, the local police departments are in their second year of teaming up as a task force to help prevent car thefts - and it’s working. 

Kurt Frisz, Chief of Police at the St. Charles County Police Department, says they saw an impact almost immediately after launching the task force.

ST. LOUIS PREPARING TO SUE HYUNDAI AND KIA OVER RAMPANT CAR THEFTS IN THE CITY

"We’ve seen a drastic decrease in our auto thefts. We’re down almost 30% year to date, and I think a lot of it is a direct result of this task force," said Chief Frisz. 

Chief of Police at the Lake Saint Louis Police Department in St. Charles County, Chris DiGiuseppi, says he thinks the county’s task force is a great model for police departments across the country if they want to implement something effective in combating auto thefts.

"Some of our police departments saw decreases just after the first year. The O’Fallon Police Department saw an 8% decrease in stolen vehicles, Wentzville Police Department saw a 31% decrease in stolen vehicles, St. Charles County Police Department saw a 42% decrease in stolen vehicles, and we at Lake Saint Louis saw a 27% decrease merely after the first year. The effectiveness has been tremendous," said Chief DiGiuseppi. 

Police departments in St. Charles County's operations are inspiring more counties to launch similar programs, with the common goal of stopping these criminals. 

GEORGIA LYFT DRIVER ISSUES WARNING AFTER GETTING CARJACKED AT GUNPOINT

Agencies in neighboring St. Louis County are now following St. Charles County’s model. Chief of Police at the Town and Country Police Department in St. Louis County, James Cavins, says as they saw the car theft trend continuing to grow, they knew it would take much more effort than just public safety messages. 

"We had to collaborate as law enforcement leaders to really enhance our patrols and enhance our visibility in addressing the crime. We saw what our neighbors in St. Charles County were doing, how successful they were in their saturation details that led to the formation of an organized task force, and we came together. There were 10 of us (police departments) in the central corridor of the western portion of St. Louis County, and we began the stages of developing a similar detail," said Chief Cavins. 

On certain nights, dozens of additional officers position themselves in residential neighborhoods and intersections across the county based on crime data. On the nights St. Louis County deployed similar tactics over the past few months, police reported zero car thefts.

"What we do is old-fashioned police work with better training and better technology. We’re using drones, license plate readers, and aircraft. Anything we can throw at this we have," said Chief Frisz.

WHAT TO KNOW IF YOU LIVE IN ONE OF THESE TOP 10 AUTO THEFT HOTSPOTS

Law enforcement in St. Charles County got the prosecuting attorney and judges on board.

St. Charles County Prosecutor Tim Lohmar says they’re cracking down on these crimes by asking for high bonds and higher penalties, including recommending prison time. 

"Historically these crimes were considered property crimes and as a result it was rare that you’d get a high bond, but it was also rare that you’d get a prison sentence for something like this. We took the position that if these guys, the men and women of law enforcement, are going to put in all this heavy lifting and all this effort to apprehend these criminals, we need to do our part and follow through," said Lohmar. 

Lohmar says most of the offenders are young.

"They are bold, they don’t seem to give much thought to cooperating with police officers, they don’t seem to care much what the consequences are. They’re also typically armed and a lot of times when they are arrested, some of these firearms that are recovered have been used in other violent crimes in the metro area. So, it’s not just a crime for St. Charles County, but it’s something that affects the entire region," said Lohmar. 

Lohmar says a lot of times, the victim’s cars won’t be recovered after they're stolen.

"If it is, it’s not gonna be in working condition. I think the bigger picture, it’s really just the sense of security. When a person is victimized in that way, it really violates their sense of security," said Lohmar. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Since crime typically spikes during the holidays, these operations will really be ramping up soon and will expand to retail districts as well.

"The best crime fighting tool that we have in law enforcement is the visibility of more officers on the street," said Chief Cavins.