UMPD received 372 reports of College Park larceny-thefts in 2023 after it switched to a new reporting system, according to federal crime statistics.
In 2019, under the previous Uniform Crime Report system, University of Maryland Police received 243 reports of larceny — the “unlawful taking” or “carrying” of property without force, violence or fraud.
The NIBRS no longer includes the “Hierarchy Rule,” UMPD spokesperson Lt. Rosanne Hoaas said in May.
The rule previously required law enforcement agencies to report only the most “egregious” criminal offense for each incident, regardless of any other offenses the suspect was ultimately charged with, according to Hoaas.
Under the NIBRS, more incidents are being counted, Hoaas said, which leads to more transparency for the community. It is important for the public to have context when comparing different federal crime statistics, she added.
In 2022, UMPD received six motor vehicle theft reports, federal statistics show, while 31 cases were reported in 2023.
“Motor vehicle theft involves the actual theft, whether it’s an attempted motor vehicle theft or a completed motor vehicle theft,” Hoaas said. “Those are the vehicles — cars, trucks, SUVs, golf carts, a lot of our numbers are golf carts.”
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People sometimes take campus department golf carts for “joyrides,” Hoaas added.
Motorcycles, bicycles and some Vespa scooters also count toward motor vehicle theft numbers, she said.
Hoaas noted the local increase in auto thefts occurred at the same time as a national increase in Kia and Hyundai thefts.
“It’s not just a Maryland thing,” she said. “Everyone was seeing the effect of that trend, which was made popular by a TikTok video.”
A series of viral TikTok videos posted in 2021 revealed how to steal the cars.
Reports of stolen Hyundai and Kia models nationwide increased by more than 1,000 percent between the first half of 2020 and the first half of 2023, according to the Highway Loss Data Institute, a nonprofit that tracks insurance statistics.
Ariel Kane, a junior special education major, said she did not realize larceny and motor vehicle theft were “so high” in the area.
“I will probably be more guarded,” Kane said.
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To reduce potential future motor vehicle thefts, some police departments in the area distributed free anti-theft devices, such as steering wheel locks, to Kia and Hyundai drivers while supplies lasted, Hoaas said.
Between Jan. 1 and Sept. 12, stolen vehicle reports decreased 30 percent compared to the same timeframe last year across the county’s first division, which includes College Park, according to a spokesperson from the Prince George’s County Police Department.
To address the potential roots of criminal activity, the city invests in food security and emergency financial support, while also offering additional social services, District 3 council member Stuart Adams said in a statement to The Diamondback.
The city has invested in increased public safety staffing, street lighting and cameras, Adams wrote in the statement.
For Boye Yisa, a business administration graduate student, while students may feel a sense of security because of campus police, it is ultimately the student’s responsibility to be aware of their surroundings.
