Southern Nevada takes jump in car-theft stats

Jace Radke

Wednesday, May 1, 2002 | 9:06 a.m.

The Las Vegas area ranks as one of the top targets for car thieves, according to a new study from an insurance industry group.

The study by the National Insurance Crime Bureau shows that 12,693 cars were stolen in Southern Nevada and Northern Arizona last year. About 812 cars per 100,000 residents were stolen in the region.

Those numbers are up from 11,042 thefts and a rate of 706 cars per 100,000 residents in 2000. The area now has the 11th-highest car theft rate, compared to a ranking of 13th in 2001.

Topping this year's list is Southern Arizona, with 35,161 thefts and a rate of 1,081 cars per 100,000 residents.

NICB spokesman Michael Erwin said that auto theft is a changing crime.

"It's no longer the 16-year-old out joy-riding, it's the organized crime ring that's going to get the vehicle out of the country as quickly as possible," Erwin said.

Specialized police units such as the Metro Police Vehicle Investigations Project for Enforcement & Recovery (VIPER) are springing up across the country to deal with more specialized auto theft rings.

Along with selling cars to overseas buyers, car theft rings also chop cars for parts to sell and use. Thieves can also switch vehicle identification numbers on cars and then sell the stolen vehicle.

According to Metro Police statistics, 13,680 cars were stolen in Clark County last year. That total is up from 11,861 in 2000 and 11,718 in 1999.

The most popular car makes among thieves in Las Vegas are the Chevrolet Camaro, Honda Accord, Ford Mustang, Toyota Camry, Dodge Caravan, Nissan Sentra, Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme, Buick Regal, Plymouth Voyager and Saturn SL2.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.