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Authorities are racing to pump the brakes on a startling trend involving organized criminals using stolen vehicles to terrorize communities, with videos of chaotic street takeovers wreaking havoc from Boston to Los Angeles garnering millions of views online.
The takeovers – which are typically organized on social media – often involve dozens of motorists, motorcycle riders or cyclists commandeering local roadways, with several instances of stolen vehicles being used in street races.
“Street racing has been around for decades,” Kyle McPhee, a stolen vehicle identification specialist and retired detective sergeant with the Michigan State Police, told Fox News Digital. “A lot of street takeovers started during the COVID shutdowns. Then there is the social media aspect of it, they can spread information very quickly.”
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“All they have to do is make an Instagram post, [saying] ‘We’re going to meet at a certain location,’ and 400 to 500 people show up instantly. It’s a party and it becomes competitive.”
Similar to a flash mob, participants will often swarm a local intersection or block roads to perform risky stunts and drive recklessly. The takeovers typically occur late at night or in the early morning hours, with some groups igniting fireworks to add to the thrill.
McPhee points to criminal groups recruiting minors to carry out vehicle thefts primarily targeting luxury vehicles being stored in manufacturer parking lots, since the legal repercussions are often less serious for minors.
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“It’s organized crime that gets involved in some of these thefts,” McPhee said. “They’re dropping off the juveniles. They run into the lot because the keys are kept in the vehicles as they come off the assembly line, and they’ll steal them.”
Additionally, new technology allowing thieves to access a vehicle’s locking system digitally can allow them to drive off within minutes.
“A lot of these vehicles are being stolen in under five minutes,” McPhee said. “We think they’re very technological, but they have kind of jumped the shark and gone so far with the technology that if you’re good with some computer hacking skills, they’re not hard to steal.”
Last year, Los Angeles authorities began sounding the alarm after videos circulating on social media showing how to steal certain models of Infiniti and Nissan cars went viral, according to NBC 4.
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Police reportedly believe the videos – which teach thieves how to access a vehicle using a tool meant for professional locksmiths – contributed to three large-scale street takeovers involving a dozen of stolen vehicles being burned and wrecked in San Fernando Valley.
“What can happen with these [cars] is they change hands a lot on the street,” McPhee said. “Somebody will steal them, they might flip that car on the street to somebody else for some cash.”
Thieves tend to target cars with high horsepower engines that are attractive for racing, according to McPhee. Once a vehicle is flipped, it is often stripped for parts and resold – making it difficult for law enforcement to recover.
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“They’re very sought after,” McPhee said. “You’ve got to be very careful. You’ve got to put your hot rods inside.”
The issue involving stolen vehicles being used for street racing is countrywide, with Texas authorities seizing 17 stolen cars during a crackdown on takeovers in 2022, ABC 13 reported.
In August, California’s Long Beach Police Department said they seized seven vehicles and made two arrests stemming from a “commercial burglary and illegal street racing takeover incident.”
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Detectives began investigating a suspected “coordinated operation” after a burglary took place at the same time as an illegal street racing takeover on July 14, authorities said. Police subsequently canvassed the area, speaking to local business owners and viewing security video, which ultimately resulted in the arrests of two 20-year-old suspects.
As the trend becomes increasingly widespread, criminals are turning to faster ways to procure cars for racing.
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In light of the sweeping number of takeovers plaguing communities, authorities throughout the country are working to crack down on the dangerous – and sometimes deadly – takeovers.
In a Thursday news conference, Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey addressed the takeovers wreaking destruction and havoc throughout the state’s streets, while pointing to a recent incident in which a police officer’s vehicle was set on fire.
“These participants are ignoring lawful orders to disperse,” Healey said. “They’re concealing their identities a lot of times with masks. They’re acting aggressively at times towards police officers, and in some cases deploying fireworks. This causes public disorder.”
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Healey also announced her administration is planning to allocate $14 million to combat the takeovers, while providing additional resources to law enforcement and facilitating collaboration between state and local authorities.
Similarly, Los Angeles County has also announced a partnership between the district attorney’s office and local law enforcement to combat the chaos.
“Street takeovers often lure young people looking for a thrill or to be entertained,” District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a news release. “But these reckless stunts are terrorizing our local communities, sometimes leading to death and often leading to looting, vandalism and other crimes.”
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Pointing to a 2022 incident in which a 24-year-old woman was fatally struck while watching a takeover in Los Angeles, Hochman vowed to install deterrents at several known locations throughout the city while working to expand enforcement operations.
As authorities pivot to spreading community awareness while cracking down on takeovers, McPhee warned the uptick in stolen vehicles being used by racers trying to go viral on social media can lead to even more tragedies.
“It’s all about the clicks in the media,” McPhee told Fox News Digital. “They’re putting this stuff out there, and they really don’t have any regard for human life.”
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