In the past two years, car thefts have skyrocketed in many U.S. cities, driven by a trend targeting Kias and Hyundais.
In Chicago, 80 cars on average were stolen every day last year. In Minneapolis, a woman’s car was reportedly targeted three times in six months . But just across the Mississippi River in St. Paul, Minn., a very different story is playing out.
Although the smaller Twin City also saw a surge, car thefts there have since fallen dramatically, and local officials say a focus on prevention and youth intervention likely has made the difference.
A viral video drove the surge
“We’re dealing with a crime that has an obvious cause,” says Jeff Asher, a crime analyst and co-founder of AH Datalytics. “And that’s just rare to see.”
Thefts began to balloon nationwide in the summer of 2022, after a TikTok video exposed a security vulnerability in certain models of Kia and Hyundai cars that made them easier to steal. Asher says the original video was up for only a few weeks, but that was enough time for it to spread.