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An outbreak of auto theft

After a spike in the number of thefts, police are pulled off drug enforcement and temporarily reassigned to search for stolen vehicles.

By LEANORA MINAI
Published July 20, 2004

	[Times photo: Willie J. Allen Jr.]
	St. Petersburg Police Street Crimes Officer Chris Herron checks the temporary license plate number on a Jeep Grand Cherokee thought to be stolen and parked on a dead end street. The Cherokee was found to be stolen, and the temporary license number was false.

ST. PETERSBURG - It was just after midnight, and Officer Chris Herron was hunkered down along Seventh Street S, a corridor where police frequently come to look for stolen cars.

Moments later, a maroon Jeep Grand Cherokee with a broken taillight and paper license tag barreled by.

"Cherokees are stolen a lot," Herron said as he pulled his unmarked squad car onto the street Wednesday.

The Cherokee, it turns out, was stolen from St. Pete Beach, and the driver soon was arrested and charged with auto theft.

This scene is becoming increasingly common as St. Petersburg police deal with a disturbing spike in auto thefts. Between March and June, auto thefts were up by more than a third over the same months last year. In May, vehicle thefts in St. Petersburg rose 81 percent over May 2003.

"When the kids got out of school, we had a real high peak," said Maj. Reggie Oliver, who oversees property crimes.

Pinellas County schools let out May 18. The number of citywide auto thefts jumped from 161 in April to 248 in May.

Thieves are targeting the northeast area of the city, as well as apartment complexes further south. Popular targets include $30,000 to $40,000 Dodge Durangos and older model Chevrolets and Buicks. The older vehicles are commonly stripped for parts.

Over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, about 30 vehicles were stolen, police said.

The surge in thefts spurred the recent special assignment of the Street Crimes Unit, normally a drug enforcement squad, on a special mission: Search for stolen vehicles and arrest drivers.

The unit finished its operation Friday. In five days, it recovered eight stolen vehicles and arrested seven people.

While auto thefts are on the upswing in St. Petersburg over the past four months, other cities have seen declines.

In Tampa, vehicle thefts dropped 32 percent, or 598 to 404, in June of this year compared to June 2003, said Tampa police Sgt. David Puig.

His unit closely monitors juveniles, the most frequent auto theft offenders, by visiting their homes to see if they're abiding by their curfew and probation, he said.

"If you keep them in jail where they can't commit crimes, your stats are going to go down," he said. "But there's always a new generation of auto thieves growing up into those ranks."

What's more, police said, the Internet offers keys and devices that can work in almost any car lock. And first-time car thieves usually get probation.

"A lot of times we can tell we have new suspects trying to learn how to steal cars because we see a lot of attempts," said Oliver, the St. Petersburg police major.

"A lot of cars that have been damaged but not taken. They're pretty much practicing."

Some people pin the problem on the courts.

Marie Scheu, 66, whose 1994 Acura disappeared from a St. Petersburg parking lot in May, has a simple prescription: "If they get caught, they should be whupped."

Prosecutor Jim Ferguson, director of the state attorney's office juvenile crimes division, said punishment for auto theft varies by judge, as well as the criminal record of a juvenile offender.

Sometimes, tragedy can prove a major deterrent, police say.

Auto thefts in St. Petersburg plummeted after three teens were killed in March 2003 when their stolen red Dodge Neon, speeding away from a police car, hit a tree at an estimated 80 mph.

"I personally think it was because of the fatality," said auto theft Sgt. Robbie Clyman. "It was kids who died, and I think the other kids saw that."

St. Petersburg's Street Crimes Unit was determined to make a difference of its own.

On a recent evening, about 20 unit members hit the streets for 10 hours. Officers would see a suspicious vehicle, possibly matching a vehicle on a list of stolen cars, and then call out license tags over their dispatch radios.

Herron, one of the unit officers, drove and typed license tag numbers into his squad car computer.

Officers, some in unmarked cars, would swoop into the area of the suspect vehicle and then back off when the computer revealed no alert of it being stolen. Cars were stopped for a driver's license problem or traffic infraction.

In a 10-hour shift, Herron ran at least 200 license tags.

It was near the end of his shift after midnight Wednesday when the 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee tore by him on Seventh Street S.

Behind the wheel was Bland Crumbley, 18, of St. Petersburg.

He sped away after Herron pulled behind him. Crumbley made five quick turns on dark side streets and rolled through a stop sign. Soon after, Crumbley abandoned the Jeep and ran. He was chased down and tackled.

Lori McCool, 42, owner of the Jeep, got her car back a few days ago. It had been missing since June 30. Her daughter's 80 compact discs were gone. Someone put tint on the windows. Cigarette or cigar burns covered the seats. Dents and dings dotted the body.

She's piping mad at the thieves .

"We don't have zero tolerance," said McCool, a St. Pete Beach resident. "We have unlimited tolerance, and I think that's contributing to the problem."

- Leanora Minai can be reached at 727 893-8406. Send email to minai@sptimes.com

[Last modified July 19, 2004, 23:48:20]