NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Police Department Analytics Unit released its weekly report on citywide crime.
One of the most staggering numbers is auto theft. It is up by 118% compared to this time last year.
There were 728 auto thefts in the first 28 days of 2023. In the first 28 days of 2022 when 334 auto thefts took place.
162 auto thefts took place from January 22 to January 28, according to NOPD.
In a statement to WWL after they sent over the crime statistics, NOPD says the “count of reported incidents that included the theft of an automobile stands at 796 incidents.”
Those include armed carjackings, attempted simple carjackings, simple carjackings, attempted auto thefts, auto theft and auto theft and simultaneous recovery.
The NOPD releases these stats in three categories property crimes, property crimes, and a special subcategory that includes carjacking, non-fatal shooting, and non-fatal shooting victims.
Here are the statistics from the week of January 22 - 28:
Rafael Goyeneche, President of the Metropolitan Crime Commission says we will likely exceed the 2022 car thefts.
“We started the new year out at an unprecedented level that hasn’t let up so we’re on pace for a really bad year from a car theft perspective,” Goyeneche said.
Having your car stolen is a feeling New Orleans resident, Anthony D’Antonio is familiar with. His car was stolen in right before Christmas last year while he was away on vacation, from his driveway.
“Oh it’s a great violation and who would think they’d take it right from my driveway,” D’Antonio said.
His son filed the report for him since he wasn’t in the country. He says it took his son three and a half hours to file it.
Many people are having a similar issue. Goyeneche says the amount of cars stolen may actually exceed what’s been reported as he says over 100 cars have been stolen, but the victims have left before officers arrived on scene.
“When the police department is a third understaffed from what they’re needed an they’re not just responding to automobile thefts but every other category of felony crime it’s understandable there will be some delays in processing in reporting some of the reported crime events,” Goyeneche said.
Goyeneche says many cars have been recovered. D’Antonio’s hasn’t unfortunately. He has two other cars he’s worried will also be stolen, or even worse his house will be broken into.
“It’s terrible something has to be done something has to be done,” he says.