Thieves using electronic devices to break into cars in South Nashville
Residents explain how the thefts were taking place after watching on video.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Video shows thieves using new technology to break into locked cars in a South Nashville neighborhood.
Residents said a group of people went around holding transmitters next to cars and opened doors within seconds. People who had their cars broken into Thursday couldn’t believe what they were seeing.
“He opened that locked door like it wasn’t even locked,” Marek Taylor said.
The video shows someone breaking into a car Taylor said he locked just hours before.
“They pulled up in their car. The driver got out and he came right up and made a beeline straight over towards the car,” Taylor said.
In the video, you see the man struggle to unlock one neighbor’s car at 3 a.m. before dashing over to Taylor’s truck.
“I was about to laugh at them, thinking, ‘Well, I lock my car all the time. Have fun getting in there,’ and then he opened that door like it wasn’t even locked,” Taylor said.
Taylor said they used what’s called a transmitter.
“What it does is it amplifies the signal from your key fob inside your house and makes the car think that he’s standing right next to the car with your key fob,” Taylor said.
It’s a task he and his neighbors said they had no idea existed.
“It’s tough to know that you think you’re in a safe neighborhood and then something like this happens,” Brett Baranauckas said.
“I had never seen anything like that before,” Taylor said. “I thought if you locked your car door, the only way they could get in is if they forcefully broke in.”
Taylor said there is something you can do to stop this.
“If you put your key fob in an RFID bag then it stops them from being able to use that transmitter,” Taylor explained. “So, the only way they can break in is if they actually break a window or forcibly jam your open door.”
“It’s a tool people along the street say they’re investing in.
While Taylor said all they took from him were a few expensive glasses, Metro Nashville Police said so far this year hundreds of cars have already been broken into. It’s an issue they are constantly warning people about.
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