Surge Of Vehicle Thefts In Arvada In 2020: Metro Denver Report

ARVADA, CO — After the pandemic hit Colorado, there was a surge of vehicle thefts in Arvada and across Denver's metro area, according to a new report by Colorado's Metropolitan Auto Theft Task Force.

Compared to 2019, there was a 23 percent increase in vehicle thefts in Jefferson County in 2020, but Arvada saw a 44 percent increase.

Some other Jeffco cities also saw a much higher increase:

• Wheat Ridge: 92 percent increase
• Edgewater: 77 percent increase
• Golden: 67 percent increase
• Lakewood: 56 percent increase
• Westminster: 39 percent increase

Denver and Adams counties still have the highest per capita rates in the metro area, but the following cities saw the highest increases in vehicle thefts between 2019 and 2020:

• Sheridan: 107 percent increase
• Castle Rock: 97 percent increase
• Wheat Ridge: 92 percent increase
• Parker: 86 percent increase
• Greenwood Village: 78 percent increase

Compared to 2019, vehicle thefts rose in Denver's metro area by 55 percent in 2020, according to the report:

• Total vehicle thefts in 2019: 13,035
• Total vehicle thefts in 2020: 20,185

For the first two months of 2020, there was a weekly average of 235 vehicle thefts in metro Denver. After the stay-at-home order went into effect March 15, the weekly thefts rose steadily to an average of 462 thefts by the end of the year, the report shows. There was an increase of around 95 percent from the first 8 weeks of 2020 to the last 8 weeks of 2020.

There was a 51 percent increase in Denver.

Based on the 2019 FBI Economic Impact estimate of $8,886 for each stolen vehicle, the impact of motor vehicle thefts in metro Denver was more than $179 million, compared to $115.8 million in 2019.

While Denver's metro area includes just over half of Colorado's population, the region saw nearly three quarters of vehicle thefts in our state, the report shows.

Colorado's Metropolitan Auto Theft Task Force investigates vehicle thefts and assists all law enforcement agencies in Denver's metro area. The task force's partner agencies include the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office, the Aurora Police Department, Colorado State Patrol, the Denver Police Department, the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, the Lakewood Police Department and the Wheat Ridge Police Department.