It can take less than a minute for thieves to steal an unlocked running vehicle: this is the message Calgary police are trying to spread as they launch an annual awareness campaign called Operation Cold Start.
This year marks the fourth time the Calgary Police Service (CPS) is conducting the program, which aims to stop the spike in stolen vehicles typically seen in winter months.
“Warm-up thefts are crimes of opportunity where car thieves target vehicles that are left running and unattended,” the CPS said in a news release. “These thefts are preventable, contribute to the high rates of auto theft in our city and create significant risks to public safety.”
To prove just how quickly the crime can occur, the CPS posted a video to its YouTube channel that shows a driver unlocking their vehicle, turning it on and then walking off. A thief then hops in the vehicle and drives off. The entire video is exactly one minute long.
Staff Sgt. Graeme Smiley said that while Calgarians seem to be getting the message, they are still seeing so-called warm-up thefts on a daily basis.
Last month alone, Calgary police said 80 of the vehicles reported stolen throughout the city were left running.
“We are asking citizens to help us reduce the number of auto thefts by using a remote starter or staying with their vehicle while it warms up,” Smiley said. “We know that car thieves are out looking for vehicles that are easy to steal and we need the public’s help to take this opportunity away.”
In the first nine months of 2018, police said there were 4,546 vehicles stolen throughout Calgary — which works out to about 17 per day.
The first Operation Cold Start was launched in 2016. The program sees officers patrol communities looking for vehicles left running and unattended. When officers find these easy targets, they approach the driver to warn them about the danger of what they’re doing.
“Auto theft offenders routinely engage in high-risk criminal driving behaviour, have little regard for the safety of Calgarians and do not care if a vehicle becomes damaged or involved in a collision,” the CPS explained.
According to police, more than 41 per cent of all stolen vehicles that have been recovered in 2019 were reportedly damaged or involved in a collision.
Last winter, from November 2018 to April 2019, Calgary police said a total of 494 vehicles were reported stolen while left running.
“Quiet, residential neighbourhoods, under the cover of darkness … On cold mornings, people would not be under the impression that there’s anything amiss, but it’s actually criminals targeting those neighbourhoods,” Smiley said.