For many U.S. residents, the thought of knowing all your neighbors and leaving your doors safely unlocked probably seems like something honorable to aspire to. After all, it’s part of that white picket American Dream. Unfortunately, police say drivers in Columbia, South Carolina, might be a bit too comfortable with each other for the realities of car ownership in 2025.
Between April 26 and 27, just 48 hours, the Richland County Sheriff’s Department responded to six different vehicle thefts. After understanding the details of each, the authorities took to Facebook. Why? To ask locals to do something that much of the country already finds pretty obvious.
Police are asking drivers, “Where are your car keys?”
As it turns out, five of the six stolen vehicle reports involved thieves taking the cars with their original keys . In other words, the drivers didn’t lock the doors. To turn a bad habit worse, they also kept the keys somewhere close (even inside the car) and unprotected.
In response, RCSD posted a very simple ask: Keep your car doors locked and take your keys with you.
“Help protect your belongings by locking your vehicle and bringing the keys inside. Do not leave them in your car. Do not leave the spare keys to another vehicle in your car. Do not leave your vehicle keys in an unsecured garage. You can do so much to protect yourself by taking a few extra seconds to lock your car and keep your keys with you.” …