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SUGAR HOUSE — A Sugar House man is echoing the cautions of police after his vehicle was stolen in front of his house.
Following his morning routine, Javier Rodriguez, 30, walked outside his home on Roosevelt Avenue Monday morning to warm his cars up. He started the Chevy Tahoe for his wife, then started his HVAC service van before heading inside. He said he had taken three steps over the threshold when he heard the familiar and distinct sound of his Tahoe driving away.
He turned around, saw the brake lights of the SUV turn right onto 1600 East following a grey Chevy truck which he claims dropped the thief off. An instant later, Rodriguez was in his van, pursuing the stolen Tahoe.
“Within seconds, I jumped off my porch, down the sidewalk, over the divider in my van. I never lost those brake lights, only got closer to them,” Rodriguez said.
As he chased the Tahoe from 1600 East to Kensington Avenue, 1300 East and 900 South, he called police dispatch. Rodriguez said he was so concerned about his property, he was barely able to remember the license plate number of his Tahoe.
He chased the car and its driver to a gas station and mechanic shop at 900 South and 1300 East, where he cornered the Tahoe, he said. The thief then fled on foot and Rodriguez said he pursued. Rodriguez lost sight of the man in the neighborhood behind the gas station.
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Car thefts skyrocket when temps drop, police warn
When temperatures drop, the number of car thefts typically sky rocket. Police are warning Utahns against leaving their idling cars alone to warm up.Rodriguez was able to recover his Tahoe, though it had just over $1,000 in damages done to it in the pursuit.
“That expression, ‘Drive it like you stole it,’ they lived up to it,” Rodriguez said.
Police have cautioned Utahns against leaving cars idling unattended. They say the number of car thefts increase during the wintertime due to unattended cars warming up, despite a city ordinance that bans people from idling their cars for more than 2 minutes.
Detective Veronica Montoya, with the Salt Lake City Police Department, also cautioned people whose cars are stolen not to pursue, but call 911 immediately with a description of the thief, the vehicle, license plate number and the direction they are headed.
“A lot of times, we don’t know what condition the person who stole the car is in, so we wouldn’t want them to hurt you for your vehicle,” Montoya said. “We don’t want you to jump in another car and start chasing them. We would hate for your to hurt somebody else as well.”
Rodriguez said he feels lucky he was safe and got his property back, albeit damaged. He said the incident caused him to take further security measures and taught him never to leave his car idling, even in a neighborhood he considers safe.
“It was scary. It was a really crappy situation. You don’t know what to do in that situation. After it’s all settled down, you’re like, ‘that’s very dangerous,’ ” he said. “I’m definitely not as naive. I have (secured) my car.”
He also said it has moved him to be a better, more watchful neighbor. He has lived in the neighborhood for a couple of years, but went over to several of his neighbors’ homes Monday to give them his phone number in case of emergency.
“I will for sure be a good neighbor,” Rodriguez said. “I won’t ever sit there and watch someone do something. I will do what I hope someone else would do for me.”
Montoya said no suspect has been named and the case is still under investigation.
