WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Car thefts in the Triad are on the rise. Greensboro Police said car theft numbers are higher than they were at this point last year.
So far this year, 192 cars have been stolen in Greensboro.
That is compared to 165 this time last year.
In Winston-Salem, 87 cars were stolen in just two months.
Winston-Salem police blame some TikTok trends surrounding a new challenge. It shows people how to jump-start cars without a key.
Grace Haynes said she she can never forget the day her car was stolen.
"It was probably the most unsettling thing, I went out and my car was gone," she recalled.
Haynes said thieves broke her rear window and jump started her 2020 Kia Sportage in September. Haynes said police found her car a week later. It took another six weeks for it to be fixed, but things were not the same.
"Every time I got in the car it just felt uncomfortable. It just didn't feel like mine anymore," Haynes said.
She ended up trading in the vehicle for a 2024 Kia model with preventative security measures. Haynes believes her former car was apart of the TikTok challenge.
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