BALTIMORE, Md. (WBFF) — Auto thefts are up more than 200 percent year-over-year in Baltimore City.
According to data from the Baltimore Police Department, 9,313 auto thefts were reported in Baltimore City between January 1, 2023 – October 28, 2023.
2,832 auto thefts were reported during the same period in 2022.
While car thefts are up significantly citywide, there are certain parts of Baltimore being hit harder than others.
“We know that auto theft activity is concentrated in certain areas of the city,” said Mayor Brandon Scott during a press conference Monday. “Particularly the Northeast and Southern districts.”
The Baltimore Police Department established new boundary lines for its police districts earlier this year.
A data breakdown for auto thefts in each police district is only publicly available starting after the week of July 9, 2023.
Between July 9, 2023 – October 28, 2023, BPD reports the following stolen autos in each district:
- Central District: 556 auto thefts
- Southeast District: 508 auto thefts
- Eastern District: 474 auto thefts
- Northeast District: 927 auto thefts
- Northern District: 522 auto thefts
- Northwest District: 562 auto thefts
- Western District: 421 auto thefts
- Southwest District: 444 auto thefts
- Southern District: 691 auto thefts
Auto thefts in Northeast Baltimore are occurring approximately twice as often as in other parts of the city, according to BPD data.
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In October, Reverend PM Smith of Huber Memorial Church shared his perspective on the rate of auto thefts in the Northeast.
“Because most of them are new,” said Smith. “Most of them are Hyundais and it doesn’t matter. It could be a Cadillac. It could be a Toyota. They know in this stable community — with a large number of homeowners, large and stable income base — will have a vehicle worth seeing, stealing, selling, or using for another crime.”
At the current citywide rate of auto thefts, Baltimore City will likely pass 10,000 stolen cars during the month of November.
On Monday, Mayor Brandon Scott announced expanded efforts to combat the crime trend — including targeted police enforcement in “hotspot areas.”
“The police department will deploy highly visible mobile traffic enforcement units to hotspot areas to deter property crime,” said Scott. “These units will be equipped with LPR (license plate reader) technology to identify stolen vehicles and apprehend those who make the decision to engage in this criminal activity. This past weekend, trial run implementation of those efforts were deployed in the Southeastern and the Southern Districts.”