Mpls Downtown Improvement District

MINNEAPOLIS - Minneapolis police and the Downtown Improvement District want you to Put Your Junk in the Trunk. That’s the name of an initiative to reduce thefts from motor vehicles downtown.

Theft from motor vehicles in the downtown area, particularly in parking garages and lots, is a concerning but preventable problem. In 2010 there were 849 thefts from motor vehicles in the downtown area with an estimated loss upward of $100,000.

The Put Your Junk in the Trunk campaigns will include the use of electronic street signage in the Warehouse District to remind people of this effort.

The strategy is simple; valuables should not be left in the interior of a vehicle where a potential thief can see them. Items such as purses, wallets, gym bags, cameras, laptops, briefcases, iPods, GPS units or any other items of value should be left at home or secured in the trunk of a vehicle. Even better is to place these items in the trunk prior to arriving at your destination.

While a trunk lock is fairly easily defeated a thief will target cars will obvious valuables in sight long before he or she will take the time to explore locked trunks which may or may not yield valuables for the taking.

It is important that if you see someone who seems out of place or who is acting suspiciously that you call 911 immediately. Many people wait until they get to their home or office before calling. In most cases that delay means that the person whom you are calling about will be gone when police arrive.

There is a very small but active group of individuals who make their living by stealing from cars. One person recently was noted to have pawned 39 items and it is suspected that most were taken from cars. However, much of that property could not be returned to the rightful owners as they did not have serial numbers to give to the police.

The best defense to preventing theft is to Put Your Junk in the Trunk but if a theft does occur having a serial number written down at home that can be provided to law enforcement greatly increases the chances of the recovery and return of your items.