Expert's tips on what to do if you're being carjacked amid rash of Toronto incidents
Expert's tips on what to do if you're being carjacked amid rash of Toronto incidents
Expert's tips on what to do if you're being carjacked amid rash of Toronto incidents
Some drivers may be feeling on edge as Toronto is dealing with a rash of violent carjackings targeting mostly high-end vehicles.
The latest string of carjackings occurred Wednesday night when three separate victims had their vehicles stolen at gunpoint in the span of only two hours.
Police believe all three incidents are linked and that the suspects should be considered armed and dangerous.
Earlier this week, Toronto Maple Leafs forward Mitch Marner had his Range Rover stolen at gunpoint outside an Etobicoke movie theatre. He was uninjured in the incident.
Crime Expert Mark Mendelson says carjackings may be on the rise because these thefts are easier than using technology to steal key fobs from inside a home to unlock parked vehicles.
“It's easier than being out in the middle of the night with a computer playing around in somebody's driveway. This is a much simpler way, albeit the car accidents that are showing up are pretty elaborate,” he told CP24 Friday morning.
“It's started and finished in thirty seconds and, you know, they don't care about witnesses driving by, it's not their problem,” he added.
If you’re ever being targeted in a carjacking Mendelson recommends making noise to deter the thieves.
“If you see somebody coming towards your vehicle and you have a concern about it, whether it's two or three people, you'll lock the doors and you can set the alarm with your key fob. Make some noise, that's not what they want, they don't want to attract attention,” he said.
However, if there’s any threat to your safety Mendelson says to comply with demands and give up your vehicle.
“If you're going to be approached by people who are armed, give it up and let them have the car, it can be replaced. It's just not worth your life trying to protect this vehicle.”
Toronto police are on the scene of a carjacking in Scarborough. (Beth Macdonell/CTV News)
Mendelson adds that if you feel like you’re being followed, drive to a police or fire station and call the authorities.
“There's nothing wrong with pulling into the closest police station or fire station, hitting the car alarm, calling 911, making noise drawing attention. The police will not be annoyed if it turns out to be a false call. It's not a problem given what's going on out here now.”
If criminals attempt to steal your car with children inside, Mendelson says they will likely let you take the children out before taking the vehicle.
“I suspect that if they're going to carjack you when you want to get your child out of that car seat, that may not be a problem. That's a dilemma they don't want to face and hopefully nobody has to face that position.”
Meanwhile, Toronto Mayor John Tory is asking his federal and provincial government counterparts for help with the situation, which he has likened to a "plague."
On Friday, Tory sent letters to Ontario Solicitor General Sylvia Jones and Ontario Minister of Finance Peter Bethlenfalvy as well as federal Minister of Public Safety Marco Mendicino and federal Minister of Transport Omar Alghabra seeking their help in addressing the issue.
In the letters, Tory said that there have been 93 carjacking incidents that have occurred in the city so far this year compared to just 21 at this time point in 2021.
Many of those incidents, he said, have “alarmingly” involved the use of weapons and or violence.
“This situation and the trend line cannot continue and I am writing to ask for your help,” he said. “I am confident that by working together in partnership, all three levels of government – together with the Toronto Police Service and other local police services in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area – can reverse the tide of increasing auto thefts.”
Tory had several specific asks in his letters.
He reiterated a request city council made of the provincial government in December to create a auto theft task force in partnership with municipalities and said that he would like the RCMP to partner with and provide support to that task force as required.
He also said that the Ontario government could provide additional resources to the Toronto Police Service to help deal with the “epidemic” of auto thefts.
Furthermore, he said that all three levels of government should partner together to explore “upstream solutions,” such as steps that can be taken on the assembly line.
“I look forward to the work we can do together on this important issue. We simply must act to obtain better results and I think that can best be done together,” he said. “The status quo is simply not acceptable for any of us.”
An Ontario community is reeling after a 23-month-old boy died when he was accidentally left in a hot car outside the school where his mother taught, the mayor says.
Group of Seven leaders considered a possible cap on the price of Russian gas exports on Monday as a way to put the squeeze on the funding for Vladimir Putin's war with Ukraine.
Russian long-range bombers fired a missile that struck a crowded shopping mall in Ukraine's central city of Kremenchuk on Monday, raising fears of what President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called an 'unimaginable' number of victims in 'one of the most disastrous terrorist attacks in European history.'
A passenger train traveling from Los Angeles to Chicago struck a dump truck and derailed Monday in a remote, rural area of Missouri, killing three people and injuring dozens more, officials said.
Organizers of a central Alberta rodeo and its parade committee are calling for calm after a float in this weekend's parade, which possessed a racist theme, was seen in the procession.
Nemeroff was in his early 30s and had gathered a list of accolades, including appearing on Conan and at Just For Laughs and being nominated for a Juno. Raised in Montreal West, he also leaves behind a grieving family.
Black Quebecers suffering from serious disease like sickle cell anemia need more Black blood donors, whose blood is most likely to match their own. Hema-Quebec is trying to reach these 'under-represented' potential donors.
The Special Investigations Unit has found that a London police officer did not commit a criminal offence in the shooting death of tennis coach Justin Bourassa last October.
Four London teenagers are facing charges Monday for their alleged involvement after a police officer was assaulted and knives and drugs were seized over the weekend, according to police.
As eviction day at a downtown Kitchener encampment looms, the region is doubling down that no one will be forcibly removed from the site on June 30 – the date it has said everyone living there must leave by.
City of Ottawa staff and the Ottawa Police Service are ensuring residents that planned protests on Canada Day will not devolve into the kind of occupation that residents endured this past winter.
An Ontario community is reeling after a 23-month-old boy died when he was accidentally left in a hot car outside the school where his mother taught, the mayor says.
Staff and volunteers at Divine Mercy Food Bank on Wyandotte Street East are hoping for a miracle after they say they were broken into early Monday morning.
Businesses in the downtown area are excited for their sales to shoot up as the Ford Fireworks return to the Detroit River for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Paramedics rushed a young person to the hospital with life-threatening injuries following a two-vehicle collision in Georgian Bay Township near MacTier.
Nova Scotia is expanding eligibility for second COVID-19 booster doses to include anyone aged 50 and over, however health officials are suggesting people wait to book appointments until the fall.
After a weekend full of rallies and protests across North America, the outrage after the U.S. Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe V. Wade hasn’t died down.
Despite goals of hitting climate targets and building up instead of out, the city is considering approving five new communities as it expects another 88,000 people to move here by 2026.
J.W. McDonald Auto Service has had a few names over the years but it has always been able to provide vehicle service to Winnipeggers. But now, the Exchange District staple is gearing down and set to close its doors for good.
People who lost everything when catastrophic flooding hit B.C. last year say financial support from the Red Cross fell far short and was cut off far too early.
The Sturrock brothers describe their cat Tigger – a two-year-old Bengal – as a "ferocious beast" who stares down and scares off even the largest neighbourhood dogs. But last week, the fearless feline took things to a whole new level.
An Edmonton city councillor on Monday both apologized for a social media post he shared and called an attempt to have him sanctioned for it a "smear job."
Toronto police are on the scene of a carjacking in Scarborough. (Beth Macdonell/CTV News)
