Since Oct. 17, the Huntsville Police were called on-site to 39 acts of burglary of a vehicle and seven stolen vehicle calls. These numbers do not account for acts of burglary of a vehicle or stolen vehicles if the victim did not call the police.

In a roughly two-month span of time, The City of Huntsville has seen a steady increase of vehicle crimes across the city limits.

In 2017, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety, Huntsville experienced 100 acts of burglary in a 12-month period– that number accounts for both home and vehicle burglaries – and 87 car thefts.

Since August (when many dorms and apartment buildings started move-in), the number of vehicle offenses has steadily stayed on the rise.

The Huntsville Police Department shared with the Huntsville Item some of the objects that were stolen out of vehicles on separate occasions. The most common items stolen out of vehicles are purses, wallets and computers.

On three separate cases, guns were stolen out of people’s vehicles.
Criminals are also subject to steal items some might find unexpected. One case saw a thief stealing sunglasses, prescription glasses, a car battery jump box and a graphing calculator. Another thief was only able to get away with a car manual and Bluetooth adapter.

The most active area for these crimes seem to be around the off-campus student housing surrounding Sam Houston State University.

“I also want to remind the public to lock their doors and to not leave valuables unattended,” HPD Lt. Jim Barnes told the Huntsville Item.

The Houstonian has reached out to the Huntsville Police Department, but no comment has been made yet about the rise in vehicle offenses.