What is St. Cloud Police Doing to Curtail Car Theft?

St. Cloud has hired a police officer who is specifically watching out for car theft.  St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis joined me on WJON today.  He says these thefts are typically happening as crimes of opportunity.  Kleis says education is key for people to keep them from becoming victims of these crimes.  He says this new officer works both with education on preventing crimes which includes locking of doors and not leaving valuable items within view of possible criminals and tracking down criminals who commit these crimes.

He says they have officers monitoring parking garages downtown to help with safety to prevent crime.  The city has numerous cameras downtown which includes the parking garages.  The 2022 budget for the City of St. Cloud includes money for more officers which will help with car theft and other crimes in the community.

Minnesotans in the winter often times want to start their car warm it up while unlocked and unoccupied.  This is now illegal in Minnesota based on a new statute.  Kleis says there is high value for new and used cars based on chip shortage.  He says catalytic converter theft is also a concern throughout the country.

St. Cloud Mayor Dave Kleis joins me for Radio Town Hall Meetings every other Friday from 8:10-8:50.  His next appearance will be September 3 at 8:10 a.m.