Neighborhood Where Deputy Was Killed is Colorado Springs' Auto-Theft Central

March 4th, 2018

The apartment complex where El Paso County Sheriff’s Deputy Micah Flick was killed during an attempted auto-theft arrest is at the heart of a city neighborhood most afflicted by motor vehicle thefts in 2016, a Gazette analysis of the latest full year for which census data was available.

Murray Hill Apartments, at Murray Boulevard and Galley Road, is in census tract 60, the boundaries of which stretch from Academy Boulevard east to Babcock Road, and from East Platte Avenue north to Palmer Park Boulevard. It’s where 60 of the city’s 1,828 motor vehicle thefts in 2016 happened, tying for highest in the city with tract 21.02, which intersects in the southeast at Pikes Peak Avenue and Chelton Road.
Overall, there was a 23 percent jump in car theft in 2016 from 2015, leading to a more robust effort by the Beat Auto Theft Through Law Enforcement, or BATTLE, task force. The group of officers was designed to reduce thefts, catch prolific offenders and eliminate crime rings. Funding for the task force doubled to $1.2 million that year, increasing again this year to $1.4 million, grant applications show.
Source: The Gazette – CO. Springs
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‘Kilo Car’ Covered With Fake Heroin And Fentanyl As Warning To Drivers

March 2nd, 2018

DENVER – Police departments and organizations in Denver trying to reduce car thefts unveiled a “Kilo Car” covered in fake drugs this week to highlight the problem of stolen vehicles across the state leading to other serious crimes.
“I think that it’s making a statement,” said Jill Blake, while walking by the display. “If you let your car get stolen, it could be possibly used for drug money.”
Just minutes after Coloradans Against Auto Theft revealed the car in a parking lot at 14th Street and Stout, people kept stopping to take a closer look. Many passing by said they always lock their cars and were surprised this was a common cause for stolen vehicles in Colorado. Organizers of the “Lockdown” campaign say up to 50 cars are taken each day across the state.
Source: CBS4 Denver
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