Sharp Rise in Grand Theft Auto Rates in 52nd Precinct

By SÍLE MOLONEY

NYPD vehicle
Photo by Gianandrea Villa on Unsplash

According to the latest NYPD crime statistics for the 52nd precinct covering Bedford Park, Fordham, Kingsbridge, Norwood, Bronx Park, and University Heights, grand theft auto (motor vehicle theft) crimes were up by 128.6 percent in the 28 days prior to Dec.13, compared to the same period last year. Norwood News reached out to the 52nd precinct to see if police could provide any insight or identify any patterns as to why this was the case.

Officer José Fernandez said, “As of now, a lot has to do with people double-parking their vehicles to go into the store, or to get something in their homes etc.” He continued, “The issue is that a lot of these people leave their vehicles running with the keys in the ignition and do not lock their vehicles, giving perpetrators the opportunity to flee with the vehicle. We encourage people to lock their vehicles and preferably not leave their cars running and unattended.”

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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.