Hays County seeing ‘concerning’ tire theft trend; thieves targeting Toyota vehicles

HAYS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — The Hays County Sheriff’s Office said it observed a “concerning trend” of thieves stealing tires from cars parked in apartment complexes over the last several weeks.

The office said, recently, people have been specifically targeting tires on Toyota Corollas.

“It’s a low-risk, high-reward type of enterprise,” said Lieutenant Clint Pulpan. “The tires usually aren’t traceable, so even if we find them, we won’t know who they belong to.”

Regarding why Toyota Corollas are being targeted over other vehicles, Pulpan said they are just popular cars.

“Toyota Racing Development [wheels] is what they’re called. They’re popular, and they come in stock on many Toyota vehicles,” he said.

Pulpan advised people could try to deter thefts by using wheel locks and parking in well-lit, busy areas.

“Wheel locks are similar to lugnuts. They screw on the same way and have a pattern that requires a special key to remove them,” he said.

“They’re not foolproof. Smart thieves can find a way around them, but you’re trying to target harden your tires. Maybe it takes them too long to get your tire, and they’ll move on to somebody else’s who doesn’t have the security measures in place,” Pulpan continued.

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