Oak Creek Police Report Alarming Trend In Vehicle Thefts

OAK CREEK, WI – Officers with the Oak Creek Police Department said they’ve identified an alarming trend relating to vehicle thefts.

According to police, a majority of vehicles taken from Oak Creek are unlocked vehicles with keys inside of them.

“Please do not leave a valet key in your vehicle, and do not leave your vehicle running with the key in the ignition,” police warned via social media.

Oak Creek has an ordinance which prohibits leaving a vehicle standing with the key in the ignition.

“Together we can reduce vehicle thefts in our city,” police said.

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, there were an estimated 721,885 thefts of motor vehicles nationwide in 2019. More than $6 billion was lost nationwide to motor vehicle thefts in that year. The average dollar loss per stolen vehicle was $8,886.