DATE: Tuesday, August 26, 1997              TAG: 9708260372

SECTION: FRONT                   PAGE: A1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY NAOMI AOKI and LARRY W. BROWN, STAFF WRITERS 

DATELINE: NORFOLK                           LENGTH:  106 lines

NORFOLK PUTS BRAKES ON CAR THEFTS 27% FEWER CARS STOLEN IN 1996

REASONS FOR THE DECREASE:

A SPECIAL POLICE TASK FORCE.

INCREASED SECURITY AT SHOPPING CENTERS

A LITTLE LUCK

Auto thefts in Norfolk, which leads the region in the number of cars stolen every year, plunged by 27 percent last year.

Overall, 630 fewer vehicles were stolen from the streets and shopping malls of Norfolk in 1996 than in 1995.

Police credit a special task force that targeted car thieves, beefed-up security at large shopping centers - which are most susceptible to auto thefts - and a little luck.

For Rick Polley, general manager of Military Circle Mall, the drop in auto thefts is welcome news. What's better, Polley said, is the even more dramatic decline in the Military Circle-Janaf area.

That bustling commercial district has the city's highest auto-theft rate, but the rate is based on population - relatively few people live in the area - and does not account for the estimated 63,000 cars that travel the commercial strip daily.

In 1995, 115 cars and trucks were stolen there. Last year, the number dropped to 64, an analysis of police incident reports showed.

``I'd love to see auto theft go down to zero,'' Polley said. ``Realistically, that's not going to happen. But we have to have a zero-tolerance attitude.''

Polley credits the district's 44 percent drop to the dozen bike patrol officers based in the commercial district, which includes the two shopping malls and other retail stores; the combined crime-fighting efforts of area retailers; improved lighting in parking lots; and additional security guards.

At Military Circle Mall, the fight against car thieves is about to go high-tech. In two weeks, a $250,000 camera system will give security guards in the mall's operation center a complete view of the parking lot and provide round-the-clock surveillance, Polley said.

``We can see license plates, we can see details, we can even see what side of your head your hairis parted on,'' Polley said of the system.

Retailers hope their efforts will counter a perception that the Military Circle-Janaf area is high in crime, he said.

Norfolk posted the biggest drop in auto thefts of any South Hampton Roads city last year but still has the second-highest per-capita auto theft rate in the region, behind Portsmouth. Norfolk led the region in the number of cars stolen last year with 1,703. But that was down from 2,333 the year before.

The number of auto thefts declined in almost three out of four of the 75 Norfolk districts The Virginian-Pilot analyzed. One key to the success was a special police task force that targeted car thieves throughout the city.

The task force, formed by the Norfolk Police Department in September 1995, was made up of 10 officers and operated for 18 months before disbanding earlier this year, auto squad investigator G.J. Dayton said.

``We went on an aggressive campaign to actively pursue the criminal,'' Dayton said. ``The biggest (impact) came from making all of those arrests.''

Last year, Norfolk police arrested 67 adults and 234 juveniles for auto theft, according to an annual report. That's a disproportionately large number of juveniles. In other Hampton Roads cities, only about two in every five people arrested for auto theft are juveniles, according to FBI records.

Police officers on the task force investigated only stolen cars and trucks, Dayton said. Auto squad officers also investigate hit-and-runs and stolen auto parts.

``For our city, it was a new concept,'' Dayton said. ``It's worked and we've seen the numbers decrease.''

Chrysler products are hot locally, but thieves steal a variety of cars, Dayton said.

Youthful thieves often are looking for a thrill and don't realize the severity of the crime, Dayton said. Auto theft is punishable by up to 20 years in prison.

Many of them steal in groups, he said. Some also are repeat offenders who didn't get the message the first time they were caught, he said. Dayton said he has seen the same teen-ager arrested three times in one week for stealing cars.

When you start taking repeat offenders off the streets, whether they are juveniles or adults, you start to see a decline in the number of thefts, Dayton said.

Police recover about 95 percent of stolen cars, he said. That's because most local thieves are scofflaws who are out for a joy ride and abandon the cars shortly after stealing them, Dayton said.

The task force may have been disbanded, but the crackdown on auto thieves isn't over, Dayton said.

Auto squad detectives now are targeting professional thieves, who swipe cars for chop shops or insurance fraud. They also routinely compare notes with investigators in other area cities.

Dayton urges residents to protect themselves. Anti-theft devices such as car alarms and steering wheel locking systems can help deter thieves, he said. Local merchants report an increase in car alarm sales.

Thieves are quick to take advantage of an opportunity, Dayton said. Sometimes cars are stolen when someone runs into a convenience store, leaves the motor running and the car door unlocked, he said.

``Our stats would be tremendously low if people would secure their car,'' he said. ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by Ian Martin

[A Virginia license plate]

Staff graphic by John Earle

Norfolk's Auto Theft Hot Spots

[Location, autos stolen 1996, Rates per 1,000 residents 1996,

Percent change from 1995.]

For complete copy, see microfilm KEYWORDS: AUTOMOBILE THEFT CAR THEFT STATISTICS

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