Money, GPS devices and other valuables are being stolen from cars parked around Brimbank and Melton at an alarming rate – and police say the solution is as simple as locking your car.
Crime prevention officer Matthew Mudie said about 20 per cent of all thefts from cars had occurred from those that were unlocked.
Many other cars are broken into simply because items are left visible.
Tradesmen have also been put on alert, with a recent spike in the theft of trailers and tools.
“Opportunistic thieves are taking whatever they can get, [such as] money, electronic devices, anything of value,” Leading Senior Constable Mudie said. “There has also been a recent spate of theft of wheels off vehicles. The vehicles have been jacked up and, on most occasions, had one wheel removed.”
Leading Senior Constable Mudie called on drivers to lock their vehicle at all times, regardless of whether it was parked in the driveway, while dropping the kids off at school or paying for petrol.
He also urged drivers to install lock nuts on their vehicles to decrease the chances of tyre theft.
Victoria Police statistics reveal more than 3600 reported thefts from cars across the two municipalities in the 12 months to March 2014, with 2408 offences recorded in Brimbank and 1203 recorded in Melton.
The latest data follows a Star Weekly report revealing that 3300 cars, 179 motorcycles and 160 campervans, trucks, buses and bobcats were stolen in Brimbank between 2010 and 2013. Almost one in four of those cars was stolen in St Albans, which recorded 838 thefts, followed by Sunshine (575), Deer Park (428), Taylors Lakes (274) and Sydenham (226).
Inspector Kerin Moloney said shopping centre and train station car parks were hot spots for vehicle theft and theft from cars.
