Car theft is increasing in the United States. According to a report from the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) released in April, “Over 1 million vehicles were stolen in the U.S. last year, as part of an upward trend in auto thefts nationwide.”
“This is the second year in a row that vehicle thefts have topped 1 million,” writes Kristine Parks for Fox Business. “Before 2022, levels hadn’t reached that high since 2008, according to the NICB, when 1.05 million were reported stolen.”
There are several theories regarding why this is happening. Some have blamed “bail reform laws in blue cities and states for the increase in crime,” per Parks, though the data does not support this claim.
For example, Oklahoma, which has a Republican Governor and a Republican Mayor for its most populous city, Oklahoma City, has not put such bail reform laws into effect. Despite this, last year, the state was ranked 9th in national car theft rankings.
Additionally, the Prison Policy Initiative did a study to determine whether these changes affected crime rates.
“We found four states, as well as nine cities and counties, where data exist measuring public safety from before and after the adoption of pretrial reforms,” writes author Sarah Staudt. “All of these jurisdictions saw decreases or negligible increases in crime or re-arrest rates after implementing reforms.”
Regardless, it can be proven that car thefts are indeed rising, leading to some dramatic situations, as TikTok user Beebo (@beebotows) recently noted in a video with over 900,000 views as of Saturday.
Two cars with stolen wheels
In his video, Beebo shows a car with its wheels missing at a Hampton Inn and Suites in Alexandria, Virginia.
The first car is a Lexus EvoSport, while the second is a 2024 Honda Accord. While he says he was just called for the latter, he noticed the former upon arrival. Both have their wheels stolen.
“Listen, it doesn’t take long. 45 seconds to a minute, maybe—tops—for them to get your wheels. It’s that easy for them,” he said of wheel thieves.
To avoid this, Beebo advises that one get rim locks, which make a car’s wheels more difficult to steal.
“Wheels, tires, and rims are relatively easy to snatch compared to stealing an entire vehicle. For an experienced team with state-of-the-art power tools, it’s quick work,” notes Pat Pellington for Deep Sentinel. “In addition, wheels and tires are worth a lot of money on the street, especially when they’re custom or come from larger vehicles.”
@beebotows #NissanAltima #lexus #wheellocks #stolenwheels #Fyp #fypage #wheeltheft #dmvtiktok #dmv ♬ original sound – Beebo
Commenters question the hotel
In the comments section, users questioned why the hotel was not doing more to prevent this from happening.
“If the hotel knows this is going on why don’t they have security?” asked a user.
“If everyone knows. why not just put a hiden un marked police car couple nights in a row?” echoed another.
Other users simply offered their own advice on how to prevent this from happening.
“This is why I drive an old mundane car that would be a gift if they took it… let’s just stick with that reason,” joked a commenter.
“Going to give this idea away… strap an AirTag inside your rims during mount & balance,” stated a second.
“And don’t lock the rim lock key in your glove compartment,” noted a third. “lock it in your trunk.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Hampton Inn & Suites and Beebo via email.
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