Police say simple step could help stop recent increase in vehicle break-ins
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ASHEVILLE, NC (WLOS) — The Asheville Police Department says in just the past month, they’ve seen a huge rise in the number of vehicle break-ins.
From January 2020-August 2020, Asheville police say they averaged around 24 vehicle thefts a week. For the last three weeks, that number has nearly doubled to an average of 42 a week. Of those, only 8% of the vehicles were actually locked at the time of the break-in.
Officers say the break-ins are happening all over town but are especially bad in a few areas, including part of Haywood Road and around the Asheville Outlets.
Officers say a lot of business lots and street parking lots are also acting as prime targets for criminals.
Lieutenant Evan Coward says a late summer spike in these types of crimes is not unusual, but the drastic increase is. Lt. Coward points out one of the big issues is that about 90% of the victims are simply not locking their doors, making it a fast and easy crime for criminals to get away with. “I think it’s just a great opportunity for us to remind folks to work with us by taking just a couple of seconds and hiding the valuables and locking your doors, and, hopefully, they won’t have to deal with these types of crimes,” says Lt. Coward.
Anyone who sees any suspicious activity is urged to contact the Asheville Police Department at 828-252-1110.
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