LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — In their weekly update, Bluegrass Crime Stoppers shared details of the “crime of the week,” a string of auto theft incidents in downtown Lexington.
From September 22 to October 15, detectives tallied more than 20 cases of criminal mischief to vehicles.
“I believe we have over 20 cases that were reported, and some of those cases have multiple victims,” said LPD detective Kristyn Klingshirn.
In one surveillance video, three suspects in hoodies are seen breaking into a vehicle in a downtown Lexington lot.
“Looks like they shattered multiple windows in the vehicles, riffled through contents of the vehicle and then moved onto the next one,” said Klingshirn.
Another victim of this month's auto theft, Emily Harris, told LEX 18 that she was merely visiting Lexington when the incident occurred. To make matters worse, Harris was in town for a funeral.
“Monday morning, we had plans to get up, drive into the office, and I walk into the garage and immediately notice my car isn't there, and I'm thinking ‘Well, maybe it was just towed.’”
After making several calls, Harris learned that her car hadn’t been towed, but stolen.
“It's just added another layer of complexity in my life for the last couple weeks, and it's really exhausting, it really is,” said Harris.
On day nine, Harris’ car was located, but returned in worse condition than she left it.
“The license plate had shown up on a camera and an officer got behind the car,” recalled Harris. “The car took off and ran into another vehicle on 7th street, and the driver fled the car, so it had some damage, then the whole car was absolutely ransacked there was hardly anything left in it.”
As detectives continue investigating multiple incidents like Harris’, they’re reminding the public that no tip is too small.
“We are asking that if you had damage to your vehicle or it appears the contents of your vehicle was riffled through, you can still report it,” said Klingshirn.
You can report an anonymous tip to Bluegrass Crime Stoppers here.
