Ottawa·THIS IS OTTAWA

Auto theft in Ottawa in 2024, by the numbers

As 2024 comes to a close, here's a closer look at this year's auto theft trends in Ottawa. One trend that may come as a surprise to some: The most recent data shows a decline.

Thefts declined by 20% this year, say Ottawa police

Emma Weller · CBC News · Posted: Dec 13, 2024 4:00 AM EST | Last Updated: December 16

Ottawa car thefts are down in 2024, but experts still say it's a crisis

13 days ago

3:49

2024 has seen about a 20 per cent decrease in car thefts but over 1,500 cars were stolen in the city so far. CBC's Emma Weller breaks down the data from Ottawa police.

As 2024 comes to a close, here's a closer look at this year's auto theft trends in Ottawa.

It's based on data compiled by the Ottawa Police Service (OPS), which has been collecting statistics for the past seven years.

One trend that may come as a surprise to some: The most recent data shows a decline in thefts compared to the previous two years.

"We've seen a slight drop in the first half of 2024, which is promising," said Bryan Gast, vice-president of investigative services at Équité Association, an organization that targets insurance fraud and auto theft.

OPS Det. Chris Warren confirmed thefts were down about 20 per cent in Ottawa, and he credits all the attention it's been getting.

"There's definitely been more focus on auto theft, we all know that. The federal governments invested money into it, police services have been doing projects [and] there's more enforcement," Warren said.