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Estevan is facing a new wave of vehicle thefts

A number of vehicles have gone missing within the past few weeks in Estevan and area. The Estevan Police Service (EPS) is working alongside with the Estevan RCMP to find thieves.

A number of vehicles have gone missing within the past few weeks in Estevan and area. The Estevan Police Service (EPS) is working alongside with the Estevan RCMP to find thieves.

As colder weather settles in, the amount of car thefts or thefts from vehicles traditionally goes up. December and January turn into real opportunities for thieves as more and more people leave their vehicles idling with the keys inside and even unlocked while they go shopping.

EPS Deputy Chief Murray Cowan states that in most cases that they deal with, vehicle owners didn’t do enough to protect their property.

“We are finding that virtually all the vehicles that were stolen nowadays the people stealing them have had access to the keys or to the key fobs. And that can be done in a number of different ways: vehicles left running and idling with the doors unlocked, vehicles left idling with the doors locked but it’s something as simple as breaking the window and unlocking the doors and driving away,” Cowan said.

However, it’s not always the case. A 2017 truck was stolen in the middle of the day on Dec. 3, right from a driveway in Bay Meadows while locked and not running. The vehicle owner who preferred to remain anonymous explained what happened.

“It was in between 5 and 5.30. My wife and I just got back from a holiday and just pulled into my parents’ driveway to go grab the kids, and locked the truck with my phone app,” the person said.

“We went into the house, visited for about 20 minutes, maybe a half hour at the most, and then it was time to go. My wife grabbed the kids’ bags and went outside to put them in the truck, and she is like ‘Your truck isn’t in the driveway.’”

The vehicle wasn’t found yet as of Sunday, but police came across victim’s wallet in one of the two other stolen vehicles, which were recovered in Roche Percee and Bienfait area. Another truck was stolen two days prior to the above accident and found later that day in somebody else’s yard in the same region. The Estevan police and the RCMP are trying to see if there is any connection between the different cases.

“The investigation is ongoing. We are trying to tie everything to see if there is a connection,” Cowan said. “We are looking into other thefts that could be associated with the vehicle thefts. A property that’s been recovered from the vehicles, recovered from the couple of suspects that we have arrested already. The investigation is going into something a little bigger than just a basic vehicle theft.”

While law enforcement agencies are trying to catch thieves, residents of the southeast Saskatchewan should remember that it’s their duty to do everything to make it virtually impossible for robbers to do the job.

“Lock your vehicles, take your keys with you and your key fobs,” Cowan said. “Never leave valuables inside your vehicle, especially exposed. If you are parking the vehicle for the night, take those valuables with you or at the very least put them out of sight.”

He also noted that usually thieves monitor future victims and know when it’s a good time to act. So hiding keys or key fobs in one of the obvious spots - above the visor, in the ashtray, in the glove box or cup holder – will not help to protect the vehicle if someone is already after it.