By Allison Dubrow
Mayor Adams held a press conference on Wednesday, Sept. 6, to notify the public that while violent crime is decreasing, car thefts are increasing. Adams’ administration is trying to get to the bottom of why and how they can stop these thefts.
While there has been an overall decrease in other categories of crime, such as homicides and robberies, car theft, also known as grand larceny auto (GLA), has increased by nearly 19%, according to the NYPD. In order to get the number of car thefts down, Mayor Adams and Police Commissioner Edward Caban outlined a plan that they are calling a “360-degree approach.”
The plan put forth calls on law enforcement and community officials to work together to try and decrease the number of car thefts in NYC. The NYPD is looking to work with the New York State Family Court, school administrators, the New York City Department of Probation, and violence interrupters to try and stop teenagers before they get involved with GLAs. Violence interrupters are groups made up of civilians that try to mediate conflicts and reduce violence in their communities.
The NYPD has stated that a growing amount of car thefts are committed by youth as “more than half (51.4) percent of those arrested for GLAs since September 2022 have been under the age of 18 and 88.4 percent are under the age of 25,” as stated by Adams’ administration.
As part of the plan, every NYPD precinct will have a GLA patrol car with license plate readers that will be on watch 24/7 as a way to recognize and track stolen cars. Additionally, the city will have social media campaigns and public service announcements, and will be working with the Department of Motor Vehicles to inform the public regarding car thefts.
“Our administration is serious about New Yorkers’ safety, and today we are taking control of the wheel to bring down car thefts – sending a clear message that if you steal a vehicle in New York City, you will be held accountable,” Adams said.