Another Chattanooga neighborhood sees a rash of car break-ins

Arrest tile; handcuff tile; handcuffs tile
Arrest tile; handcuff tile; handcuffs tile

While car burglars have been striking all over the city for weeks, residents of Murray Hills say their small community has become a lightning rod for theft and vandalism in recent days.

Multiple people have taken to Facebook to commiserate and share their own stories about finding their cars broken into over the last month, giving details about what was taken or what time the break-in occurred.

"My car was broken into Around 4:30am. Multiple people were seen fleeing from the car when we walked outside," Damon Thomas wrote on a neighborhood Facebook page. "They went through my glove compartment and everything else, but they didn't take anything. Just a heads up. This happened on Tarpon Trail."

Even when the doors were locked, burglars simply smashed through car windows.

"They used a rock to break the window and left the car door open after they were through. Nothing in there to take but my mother in law did call the police to file a report. Her neighbor said they thought they heard a car alarm around 3:45am," wrote Gretchen Foster.

Neighbors have batted around ideas for how to handle the situation, even going so far as to suggest a neighborhood watch should be established to look out for perpetrators all night.

Sherri De Rose, who lives on the border of Murray Hills, said she moved to the area a year and a half ago and she has had to be extremely diligent about locking up and ensuring she doesn't leave keys in the car, although she hasn't been robbed yet.

"It seems to be happening like 3, 4 am and it's not just one person. And if the door's not open, they started smashing windshields now," she said.

"Murray Hills is not a wealthy neighborhood?.What do they think they're going to be getting? Not only are they thieves, they're stupid thieves."

The incidents at Murray Hills came amid news of another small string of car break-ins earlier this week near the corner of Cowart and West 13th streets.

The owner of a nearby business said she came to work Tuesday morning and found five cars in the block had been broken into. She said the belongings of one car owner were scattered along the sidewalk.

Police are cautioning drivers to lock their cars in order to cut down on break-ins, but drivers also are being warned to keep their keys with them to avoid losing the whole car.

In the last month, 125 vehicles were stolen, bringing this year's total to 660 vehicles in Chattanooga. During the same time period last year, 564 were taken. Of the 660 vehicles stolen so far this year, 228 had keys in the vehicle and 59 of those were left with the ignition running. That means 35 percent of the autos stolen in 2017 had keys in the car.

"The quicker a car thief can steal your vehicle, the more attractive it is," said Lt. Craig Joel, head of the property crimes unit for the Chattanooga Police Department. "Taking your keys with you and locking the car doors is the simplest, most cost-effective way to make your vehicle less attractive to thieves."

Contact staff writer Emmett Gienapp at egienapp@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6731. Follow him on Twitter @emmettgienapp.

Upcoming Events