This is how many cars were stolen in Toronto in January
New Toronto Police statistics appear to show a glimmer of hope in the battle against car thieves, as January figures indicate the first decline in years of the number of stolen vehicles in the city.
The modest decline in January after years of double-digit increases could reflect a co-ordinated effort to tackle the crime – though police aren’t ready to declare victory yet, as raw numbers remain stubbornly high.
“Although any decrease is a move in the right direction, we cannot make an educated comment based on one month’s sample,” wrote Const. Victor Kwong. “What we can say is that we are increasingly concerned about the rise in violent vehicle crimes, including carjackings and home invasions.”
- Download our app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates right to your inbox
According to Toronto figures, 844 vehicles were stolen in the first few weeks of January, according to their public-facing dashboard. In the same period last year, there were 963 vehicles stolen – a decrease of about 13 per cent.
That’s a marked departure from huge increases in the previous years, which saw tremendous jumps in that time period: 392 in January 2021, to 615 in January 2022 – years that showed more than 50 per cent increases.
And it’s not the only month that shows promise – in December of 2023, 1,000 vehicles were stolen, compared to December 2022, where 1,008 vehicles were stolen.
While comparable figures were not available for much of the rest of the province, Det. Insp. Scott Wade of the OPP said his figures show a “slow in the rise” of car thefts.
“Definitely we are happy to see that the numbers are not increasing at the same rate,” he said, pointing to the cumulative effect of several busts, arrests, and also the efforts of the car industry and increasingly savvy drivers.
One of the drivers affected, Kosta Alexopoulos, says he’s going to invest in an aftermarket security system that he hopes will prevent a repeat of thieves stealing his 2023 Jeep Wrangler.
“It was my wife’s dream car. We waited so long to be able to afford it, and we finally got it. There was not even 5,000 km on it,” he said.
His security video shows two people checking it out at 4:30 am last Monday, where it was parked in his Ajax driveway. They pop the hood, and disable the horn. Then they smash a back window to gain access to the cab while the vehicle’s lights flash but there’s no audible alarm.
Soon, one is in the back seat, and the car starts. The pair drives off with a car worth nearly $80,000 after less than four minutes.
“We woke up. My wife was freaking out. The car’s not there. We look and sure enough, the car’s not there,” Alexopoulos said.
That Wrangler could be anywhere by now. Often, cars are whisked into shipping containers and sent around the world. Recently, CTV News traced one to the streets of Nigeria. Police catch only a fraction. The thirst for vehicles has driven some thieves to turn to carjacking and even to home invasions to get the car keys.
But there have been several sizable busts in the last few weeks. York Region’s Project Mamba recovered 52 stolen vehicles worth $3.2 million, many destined for Azerbaijan. A provincial carjacking task force has made almost 100 arrests and laid over 550 charges.
Alexopoulos says he wishes that new cars had better security and that it wasn’t just left to the consumer to pay more than $1,000 for a backup system.
“Hopefully things do turn around because this is becoming way too common. I know of at least three to four guys who had their vehicles stolen. That’s got to change,” he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Invasive and toxic hammerhead worms make themselves at home in Ontario
Ontario is now home to an invasive and toxic worm species that can grow up to three feet long and can be dangerous to small animals and pets.
Opinion I just don't get Taylor Swift
It's one thing to say you like Taylor Swift and her music, but don't blame CNN's AJ Willingham's when she says she just 'oesn't get' the global phenomenom.
Loud boom in Hamilton caused by propane tank, police say
A loud explosion was heard across Hamilton on Friday after a propane tank was accidentally destroyed and detonated at a local scrap metal yard, police say.
Decoy bear used to catch man who illegally killed a grizzly, B.C. conservation officers say
A man has been handed a lengthy hunting ban and fined thousands of dollars for illegally killing a grizzly bear, B.C. conservation officers say.
Tornadoes collapse buildings and level homes in Nebraska and Iowa
Tornadoes wreaked havoc Friday in the Midwest, causing a building to collapse with dozens of people inside and destroying and damaging hundreds of homes, many around Omaha, Neb.
Last letters of pioneering climber who died on Everest reveal dark side of mountaineering
George Mallory is renowned for being one of the first British mountaineers to attempt to scale the dizzying heights of Mount Everest during the 1920s. Nearly a century later, newly digitized letters shed light on Mallory’s hopes and fears about ascending Everest.
It's 30 years since apartheid ended. South Africa's celebrations are set against growing discontent
South Africa marked 30 years since the end of apartheid and the birth of its democracy with a ceremony in the capital Saturday that included a 21-gun salute and the waving of the nation's multicolored flag.
Britney Spears settles long-running legal dispute with estranged father, finally bringing ultimate end to conservatorship
Britney Spears has reached a settlement with her estranged father more than two years after the court-ordered termination of a conservatorship that had given him control of her life, their attorneys said.
opinion RFK Jr.'s presidential candidacy and its potential threat to Biden and Trump
Although it's still unclear how much damage Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s candidacy can do to either Joe Biden or Donald Trump this election, Washington political columnist Eric Ham says what is clear is both sides recognize the potential threat.