Bellingham, Whatcom law enforcement seeing increase in car thefts during pandemic
At approximately 10 p.m. Aug. 26, a Bellingham Police officer noticed a black Honda Civic with South Dakota license plates near the intersection of Elwood Avenue and Samish Way.
The officer remembered a black Honda with South Dakota plates had been reported stolen approximately six hours earlier from the parking lot at Fred Meyer, and quickly turned around to investigate, Lt. Claudia Murphy told The Bellingham Herald in an email. The Civic reportedly accelerated away, but came to a sudden stop a few hundred yards later.
Nicholas David Farvo, 32, was driving the car and matched a description, “down to the clothing,” of the man who was seen stealing the Civic earlier that day, Murphy reported, and he was booked into Whatcom County Jail on suspicion of motor vehicle theft, as well as residential burglary and two counts of possession of a controlled substance. Jail records show he is being held in lieu of $20,000 bail.
That Civic is just one in a long line of vehicle thefts reported to Whatcom County law enforcement since the coronavirus pandemic came to Whatcom County in early March, as both the Bellingham Police Department and Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office have seen increases in the crime during the past six months.
Through the first eight months of 2020, Bellingham police received reports of 244 auto thefts, Murphy reported, two of which turned out to be unfounded.
Incidents have only increased during the pandemic. According to information on the department’s crime statistics webpage, Bellingham averaged 23.0 reported car thefts the first two months of the year and 30.2 the next six months (March through August). That near-car-a-day pace continued through the first three days of September, with three reports of stolen vehicles as of Friday morning.
For comparison, there were 155 vehicle thefts in all of 2019, according to Murphy, meaning the 244 so far in 2020 is already a 57.4% increase, and there is still a third of the year left to go.
In fact, there is only one year since 2015 when Bellingham has had more reported thefts than there have been so far in 2020 — 2016, when there were 268. No other years during that time frame exceeded 200, Murphy reported.
“Reasons for increase in thefts? Hard to say, but there is likely a combination of facts at play here,” Murphy told The Herald.
And some of the possible reasons might be tied to COVID-19, Murphy wrote, adding that changes in booking restrictions, including setting lower bail or allowing crime suspects out on personal recognizance, and early release from prison by the Department of Corrections due to the pandemic could be playing a role in the increase.
In unincorporated portions of the county, the sheriff’s office is seeing the same. So far there have been 50 reported vehicle thefts — a 47% increase from the 34 reported in 2019, Chief Deputy Kevin Hester reported to The Herald in an email.
“Not sure why the big jump in stolen cars/trucks but we have noticed a big increase as you can see this year,” Hester wrote. “Burglaries are down a bit this year compared to last, and you can make an argument that with more people staying home that might be the reason they are down, but we are not really sure why the car thefts have jumped so much.”
The good news is both the Bellingham Police Department and Whatcom County Sheriff’s Office are have quite a bit of success at recovering stolen cars.
The sheriff’s office has seen a 220% increase in stolen vehicle recoveries, with 32 recoveries so far this year (64% recovered), compared to 10 during the same time frame in 2019, Hester reported.
In Bellingham, meanwhile, only 33 of the 242 confirmed cars that have been stolen remain stolen, Murphy reported, meaning 85.6% of the cars (209 vehicles) have been located. In addition, Bellingham officers have recovered 32 vehicles reported stolen in other jurisdictions.
Bellingham’s recovery rate so far in 2020 is in line with the 91% rate the department had in 2019.
Tips to avoid car theft
The National High Traffic Safety Administration estimates that 770,000 American drivers have their cars stolen each year, or about one every 41 seconds. The Seattle Police Department offered these tips to avoid being one of those victims:
▪ Never leave your keys in your car.
▪ Close all windows and lock all doors whenever you leave your car.
▪ Park in areas that are well lit.
▪ Keep your car in a garage if possible.
▪ When available, park in lots that have attendants.
▪ Turn your wheels toward the curb to make it more difficult for a thief to tow your car.
▪ Always use your emergency brake when you park.
▪ Engrave your drivers license number on your car’s VIN tag and on any removeable equipment.
▪ Replace “T” shapped door locks with straight locks that are more difficult to unlock through a window.
▪ If your car is stolen, immediately report it to local law enforcement and your insurance company.
