Police: thieves targeting large trucks to smuggle immigrants
Reporter: Alexis Patterson

Last Update: 2/11 10:58 pm

Truck Thefts

Austin police are warning owners of large model pickups to watch their trucks. Thieves are targeting those trucks, using them to transport illegal immigrants through Texas. Police say criminals are taking advantage of the trucks' roomy cabs, taking out the back seats and hiding immigrants there. Police say Austin appears to be a hub in that system.

"What they're doing, we think, is that they're having a way station here for the stolen trucks," says Detective Jeff Seaholm with APD's Auto Theft Unit.

Investigators tell us the trucks go down to the border, then return to Central Texas with illegal immigrants in the backseat area.

On Friday, investigators say they recovered nine stolen trucks from a house in southern Travis County. The trucks reportedly came from across the state: one each from Bastrop, Belton, and Burleson. Six trucks came from the Houston area.

The trucks were "waiting to be used," says Detective Seaholm. "They were not abandoned."

Police tell us all the trucks at the house had their backseats removed.

"They adapt them in other ways" too, says Detective Seaholm. "They put wooden blocks under the frames, under the springs, so they don't sit lower, which is a clue for" DPS and ICE investigators.

Austin police say in one case, a human smuggler put eleven immigrants in the cab of a Ford F-150.

Officers say it's critical to protect your truck, whether you take simple steps, such as parking in your garage instead of on the street, or install a high-tech alarm.

"I would say fully half of our security business specifically is on trucks," says David Angenend, owner of Sideways Autosalon.

Other tips for protecting your vehicle include taking your keys out of your car, parking in well-lit areas and installing theft-deterrents such as engine kill switches, steering wheel locks and vehicle tracking devices.

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