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The
report was conducted by Wirepoints and examines the growing
issue of car theft in the Windy City. The analysis shows that
the amount of carjacking incidents has increased year by year.
Ted Dabrowski, president of Wirepoints, told The Center Square
that these crimes, which used to be less frequent, happen
multiple times a day.
"The big issue is that we continue to hear about the issue of
carjacking in Chicago," Dabrowski said. "It is getting worse and
worse, and there is more and more of them. There are over five a
day now."
The report shows that car theft has nearly tripled over the last
three years. At its current run rate, Chicago will hit 1,960
carjacking incidents in 2022. In 2019, Chicago had a baseline of
603 carjacking reports.
With the high number of crimes committed, the city fails to
prosecute the criminals involved, Dabrowski said.
"It only has a 6% arrest rate for carjackings," Dabrowski said.
"People are doing this and getting away with it without any
consequences. That is why they continue to do it and do it
more."
The report shows that three-quarters of the thefts involve the
offender using a weapon. In addition, the report shows that 76%
of Chicago carjacking reports this year have been classified as
"aggravated," which would be another record for the city.
The threat of car theft has spread across the city as now many
major populated and wealthier areas are also being hit. A decade
ago, River North, Lincoln Park, and Lakeview had eight
carjacking incidents in total, whereas in 2021, they had 103.
Andrew Hensel has years of experience as a
reporter and pre-game host for the Joliet Slammers, and as a
producer for the Windy City Bulls. A graduate of Iowa Wesleyan
University and Illinois Media School, Andrew lives in the south
suburbs of Chicago.
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