Thefts from Autos Gaining Speed

The rash of thefts from cars continues in Port Washington, as more residents are reporting stolen GPS units, iPods and loose change from their mostly unlocked vehicles.

These thefts follow a parked in driveways in May, as well as and . At least a dozen vehicles have been broken into since June.

Port Washington Police Chief Richard Thomas said the department is working with its crime analyst to explore the similiarities between the thefts from vehicles and track down the culprits.

At this time, there are no suspects in the case. Thomas said one theory is that somebody is coming from Milwaukee to steal the items, and then return to the streets of the city to sell the stolen goods.

Port Washington is not alone in the thefts.

"This is a trend within the county right now," Thomas said.

The recent thefts in Port Washington include:

• 5:49 p.m. Monday: An 18-year-old Port Washington resident reported her iPod stolen from her unlocked vehicle overnight when parked in the 400 block of Summit Drive.
• 6:34 p.m. Monday: A 61-year-old Marshfield woman reported her GPS stolen from her unlocked vehicle in the 300 block of North Spring Street.
• 2:00 p.m. Tuesday: A 54-year-old Port Washington woman reported her GPS stolen from her unlocked vehicle while in the 500 block of Summit Drive.
• 7:31 p.m. Tuesday: A 28-year-old Port Washington man reported his GPS stolen from his unlocked work vehicle while parked in the 1500 block of Parkway Drive.
• 8:42 a.m. Thursday: A 46-year-old Port woman reported a bag of coins totaling between $15 and $20 stolen from her unlocked vehicle while parked in the 200 block of Summit Drive.
• 11:30 a.m. Thursday: A 55-year-old Port Washington woman reported her GPS stolen from her unlocked vehicle while parked in the driveway of her 600 block of Summit Drive residence.
• 7:50 p.m. Thursday: A 21-year-old Port Washington man reported his GPS and iPod stolen from his unlocked vehicle while parked in the 900 block of Woodland Avenue.

Thomas said the department is looking at various trends, including time of day and days of the week the thefts occur, whether items are taken from locked or unlocked vehicles, and more. This can be tricky, however, because not everything is noticed right away.

"When it's reported to us, it doesn’t necessarily tell us is when it happened," he said.

Thomas recommends residents password protect their GPS units so that it is unusable to someone who might steal it. He also reminds residents to keep their vehicles locked and place valuables in the trunk.