Dover sees a recent uptick in vehicle thefts
DOVER (November 20, 2023) – The city of has seen an increase in vehicle thefts and break-ins lately.
Most recently, a vehicle was stolen and recovered early morning Monday Nov. 20. Officials didn’t immediately share many details, such as where and when it was stolen.
After a couple of calls reporting suspicious activity, police followed the vehicle on Wooster Avenue at 2:49 a.m. It stopped on East 16th Street. The driver – a skinny person in a black hoodie standing about 5-foot-8, ran into a backyard and got away.
The vehicle had some damage, possibly from hitting a utility pole on East 11th Street near M&M Market.
Somebody reported a hit-skip there at 2:42 a.m. The caller said they awoke to a loud crash and saw two people get out of a vehicle, run toward M&M Market, then get back in the vehicle.
Just before that, somebody in the 1000 block of North Crater Avenue reported somebody in a dark hoodie with writing on the back tried to break into their vehicle.
Police Detective Chad Mowrer said the increase in car thefts is concerning. He is asking residents to lock their car doors and don’t leave valuables inside vehicles.
“Very seldom does someone break into a car – force entry into a car,” he said. “They’re opening car doors that are unlocked and taking items from inside.”
He says police are picking up their nighttime patrols, but the dark provides pretty good cover for criminals.
Other recent thefts include:
- A 1994 Chevy Cheyenne truck stolen from West 8th Street Nov. 5.
- A car that the owner didn’t know was stolen until police found it empty, in gear, with the lights on, stopped at the corner of Wooster and 20th Street at 3 a.m. on Nov. 10.
- A truck stolen overnight Nov. 13-14 from West 12th Street.
- Two guns stolen out of an unlocked vehicle the same night.
- A 2006 Honda Accord stolen from a Dover Avenue residence two weeks ago and later found disabled in Stark County.