Did You Know? Halloween is Popular Holiday for Car Theft

More than 2,300 vehicles were stolen on Halloween in 2011 according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, making it the most popular holiday for auto thieves and the scariest day of the year for car owners.

Don't become a victim of auto theft this Halloween. Here some ways to protect your property courtesy of LoJack, makers of vehicle recovery systems.

Treat your keys like candy – never leave them unattended Even if you are idling while the kids collect candy, never leave a key or key fob in the vehicle and always lock car doors and windows.

Are you afraid of the dark? A flashlight may help around the neighborhood on Halloween, but it won’t help your car. Park in busy, well lit areas to deter thieves from doing their dirty work.

Don’t let your house be haunted by ‘Tricksters’ Never program your home address as “home” in your GPS – it’s an easy way for a thief to find your house and gain access to it.

Protect your Halloween ‘Treats’ Hide all valuables, as they entice thieves to take your car — and what's inside.

Ward off “evil spirits” Thieves often seek the "easiest" target – alarms or anti-theft devices can help ward off criminals.

Here are some spooky stories from the LoJack blog:  

1. American ‘Classic Car’ Horror Story. Imagine how scary it would be to step outside and find out that your beautiful 1966 Ford Mustang convertible was missing. Twice. That’s what happened to a Mustang owner in California earlier this year. The first time the car was stolen - and retrieved - was on St. Patrick's Day. 

2. The modern day Margaret and Carrie White. You think your family might get crazy spooky sometimes? Check out the link to this rather insane story from Massachusetts, in which a LoJack System helped bust this mother-daughter criminal twosome.

3. The Not-so-Invisible Man. This is a case of so-stupid-it’s-scary. In this story, the LoJack System helped authorities recover a 2008 Scion XB; the vehicle was recovered intact, and a male suspect in the theft was soon identified – because he inadvertently left his identification in the stolen vehicle!

4. Breaking Bad gone…Bad. While police in Southern California used the LoJack System to track down and recover a stolen Melroe Bobcat Skid Steer, they stumbled upon something a lot more insidious. Authorities entered the junk salvage yard where the Skid Steer was held, they found 49 large bundles of marijuana (weighing approx. 600 lbs.), methamphetamine, a loaded .44 caliber hand gun and several shotguns; police arrested several individuals in the salvage yard. One suspect admitted that he had purchased the stolen Bobcat for $2,000, and had also stolen a van with the marijuana inside.

“Each year, we see a tremendous amount of vehicle theft on Halloween,” said Patrick Clancy, Vice President of LoJack’s Law Enforcement Division in the release. “Auto theft on Halloween isn’t just a case of kids’ joy riding anymore, but rather sophisticated criminals whose sole purpose is to find new ways to elude authorities and profit from the theft of stolen vehicles.”