Car thefts in Los Angeles are at record high during this year’s Q2 and a theory also says that vehicles are being left inactive for long time spans because of the ‘shelter-in-place’ regulation since the Covid-19 outbreak.
As per a LA police department data analysed by a non-profit news agency Crosstown, there is a 57.7% increase in car thefts from April and June than compared to the thefts from same time last year. Over these three months, around 5.744 stolen car cases were reported.
Crosstown suggested that the spike could be because the residents left their vehicles unattended for longer time spans as they ‘shelter-in-place.’
The agency also cited that the new ‘USD 0 statewide bail’ policy in the city for the lower-level felonies and misdemeanours, which the Judicial Council had announced in the month of April.
According to Lt Siage Hosea from LAPD, people believe that they aren’t going to remain in the prison for long, especially for a car theft due to which there is an increased car theft.
Notably, these Q2 thefts surpass LA’s previous record of 5,098 thefts that the LAPD witnessed in the Q4 of 2016.
The 3 neighbourhoods that stand out for highest car thefts in 2020 till now include Sun Valley, 304; Van Nuys, 293 and Boyle Heights, 327.