Police have launched a public awareness campaign to combat auto theft and theft from vehicles during the shopping season.
Barrie Police Chief Kimberley Greenwood kicked off the provincewide initiative, dubbed Lock It or Lose It, at North York’s Yorkdale Mall Thursday, Nov. 27.
The campaign involves officers examining parked vehicles to ensure they are locked and that no valuables are in plain view at mall parking lots. A notice is left on the windshield indicating what safety precautions were neglected and offering auto theft prevention tips.
"It seeks to empower citizens to take very simple precautions to ensure the security of their vehicles and belongings," Greenwood said. "We’re asking motorists to take a moment, lock their vehicles, put laptops, tablets, cellphones, smartphones and gifts in the trunk or glove compartments so that thieves are discouraged from committing a crime. We’re also reminding people that stealing valuables from an insecure vehicle can lead to other crimes such as identity theft."
Rick Dubin of the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) said identity thieves look for documents such as credit card statements to assume identities and secure credit card accounts.
"Victims may not realize that they’ve been victimized until it’s too late, costing them time and money to rectify the damage," he said, noting cases of identity theft and fraud in Canada have increased from 10,807 in 2012 to 11,594 in 2013.
Dubin said a recent case in the U.S. involved 43 vehicles being purchased using stolen identities and shipped overseas for resale.
"These individuals obtained credit card information, credit cards and some other documents that enabled them to acquire $500,000 worth of vehicles that were then exported to West Africa," he said. "They got that credit card information primarily from breaking into vehicles."
Though auto theft is declining in Canada, it’s still a big business with 73,000 vehicles stolen in 2013.
"Our message is clear: let’s not make it easy for thieves," Dubin said. "Be smart about what you leave in vehicles, lock it so you won’t lose it."