More Cars Stolen in Yakima

More Cars Stolen in Yakima

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Story Published: Apr 13, 2009 at 4:49 PM PST

By Melissa Wagner

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We've been on the list for years and cops just can't seem to turn the trend around. Last year alone, almost 800 vehicles were stolen in the city of Yakima. Add in the County, that number jumps to more than 1,800. Sounds staggering, but Action News discovered there's actually been a drop in the number of stolen vehicles. In the city, that number fell by more than five dozen over the last 8 months. "Well, We've been paying attention to who the auto thieves are. We've had some success with that given our declining rate, but it still hasn't gotten us off that list," says Captain Greg Copeland with the Yakima Police Department.

So why are we still at the top of the list? Despite our improvements, it's possible other states are doing better than we are. You may remember, back in 2007 we showed you the hot spots for stolen vehicles in the city. First Street, Nob Hill and Yakima Avenue. So Action News asked police about these areas again. They say not much has changed. Car thieves are just targeting a wider area. As far west as 24th Ave, stretching east to N. 1st Street. And north and south from Fruitvale to Summitview.

We need to do more to protect ourselves. You can see from this vehicle the locks are up and there's even a gap on this door. So this is one of the things you don't want to do, is leave your vehicle open, because anyone can just come along and grab the stuff out of your car or take the entire car itself. Action News asked the car owner, Dustin Howard if he normally locked his car. He said, "No, not at all."

Cops can only do so much, if we're not doing our part. Otherwise we can expect to be on the list yet again next year. Yakima Police hope to use grant money to buy a couple license plate readers and more bait cars. The money could also pay for extra police patrols.

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