Hartford

Hartford Police Warn of Uptick in Car Wheel Thefts

Cars being struck by thieves in the middle of the night are leaving drivers stranded and fuming.

Hartford police are warning people to protect their cars from crooks looking to steal wheels. This follows a series of crimes in parts of the city recently.

“Yes, I’m very concerned about it,” said Eustace Straker of Hartford.

Now people in Hartford are worried after police warned of several rim thefts in about the last week. Cars were targeted on Sigourney Street, Sisson Avenue and Lorraine Street overnight.

“We thought it was important to put out a bulletin to residents out in that area to keep your eyes out for that sort of activity,” said Deputy Chief Brian Foley, Hartford Police.

Officers are paying attention to the West End and Asylum Hill neighborhoods. While the hunt continues for those responsible, whoever it is seems to have expensive taste.

“What we are seeing is it’s on newer model cars with the nicer rims,” said Foley.

To protect your car police remind you to park in well-lit and busy areas, hopefully with security cameras.

Straker has had to deal with parts of his car being stolen.

“It was a whole lot, whole lot of hassle,” said Straker.

And now he’s extra careful with his car.

“I keep my eye on it as much as possible,” said Straker.

Police encourage people to turn the wheel when the park which makes it harder to pull off the tire and potentially slows down a thief. Detectives also suggest investing in wheel or lug nut locks.

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