DENVER: A surveillance camera mounted above the garage did not deter a brazen car thief from stealing Erika Gebhardt’s car while it was parked on the sidewalk.
“Somehow they got our spare key and stole our car from the road at 2:30 in the morning,” Erika said.
About two weeks have passed since then for Erika and her husband, Chris Gebhardt. The stolen car was finally recovered, but a few days later his other car was stolen as they prepared to leave a friend’s house.
“I couldn’t believe it happened twice,” Chris said.
Both times technology played a key role in the recovery of stolen vehicles. The Gebhardts were able to track down the stolen cars with their smartphones and relay the information to police. They were frustrated when they heard that the police were not acting on this information.
So right now, I was just thinking, ‘Okay, let’s at least look at that,’ Chris said.
Chris ended up calling an Uber and, with the help of a good Samaritan, he was able to track his car down an alley.
“This is the second time in two weeks that we have found our own vehicle after it was stolen. I mean, so when they stole my vehicle, two weeks ago, we did the same thing,” Erika said.
| Car Theft Data: Colorado State Patrol | ||
| 2019 | 2020 | |
| Denver County | 4,793 | 7,568 |
| Adams County | 2,964 | 4,315 |
| Arapahoe County | 2,969 | 4,842 |
| Jefferson County | 1,742 | 2,718 |
| Douglas County | 291 | 514 |
Denver7 asked a Denver Police Department spokeswoman about the response to the Gebhardts case and she responded, “The Denver Police Department is grateful for the comments and, if the reporting parties have questions about the call-making process and / or DPD’s response, we encourage you to contact us so we can discuss this issue with them. “
According to DPD, the Feb. 3 car theft occurred when the vehicle was left running on the roadway. The spokesman said the couple was warned that there would be a delayed response due to a high volume of calls at the time. Both cases remain open.