Houston Catches Car Thieves With Bait Car Program
Houston saw a 20 percent reduction in auto thefts in 2008.
July 3, 2009 — -- Would-be car thieves be warned: Attempting to steal a vehicle in Houston has gotten more difficult as law enforcement uses technology to combat auto theft.
A car is stolen in Houston every two seconds, compared to every 28.8 nationally, according to the FBI.
That's one reason Houston police are using decoy vehicles to catch criminals.
Imagine you're a thief getting behind the wheel with a simple goal in mind: to steal a car. Instead, you end up as the star of the nightly news because, unbeknown to you, the car that was parked on that well-lighted street was equipped with a GPS signal that alerts police of the potential crime.
Police use the bait car to catch would-be car thieves. The vehicles are equipped with video cameras to record the heist and then the tape is used as evidence against the assailant in court.
Authorities also can disable the engine and lock the doors remotely.
Police said the program has been a success.
"Everybody who's been arrested and charged in a bait vehicle has been convicted," said Sgt. Joe Smith of the Houston Police Department auto theft division.
The Houston Police Department has 12 bait vehicles in the program. The cars are victim-based, meaning they're in areas based on the number of auto thefts.
On one recent day, police demonstrated how the program works.
"If we had one of these vehicles armed and someone in the parking lot opened the door or moved the car or somehow changed the state of the car, then this would go off and activate and say, 'Warning! Vehicle stolen,'" officer Steve Fingerhut said. "We have never gone to court. There's a guy in the car driving our car talking about being stolen and all on audio and video. How can you say that wasn't you?"
