Tire thefts on the rise across WNY

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - Tire thieves have been active all over western New York, leaving behind unmovable vehicles sitting on cement blocks.

John Pointer had four tires stolen from his Cadillac. His wife discovered them missing when she was leaving for work. Even more surprising is to pull off the early morning theft, the tire thieves had to squeeze between two other cars without setting off a motion alarm.

"And she is yelling that all four tires are gone. I said get out of here, you're kidding me," said Pointer. "So I come downstairs, look out, and all four tires are on bricks."

MORE | See a one-on-one interview with a representative from McGard, a local company that offers a way to protect vehicles from tire thieves

It will cost the Pointers around $3,000 to replace the tires and Cadillac rims. And they aren't the only ones getting hit by this sudden financial burden. Crime statistics show tire thefts are up in Buffalo and across Erie County. Buffalo Police reported 40 incidents in the last six months of 2012.

Tires and wheels are especially susceptible to theft because they can't be readily identified, and it seems no one is immune.

"It  was parked in the corner lot over there," said John Rusinski, recalling Rural Metro Medical Services getting hit by a pair of tire thieves who ripped off an employee's tires in the middle of the afternoon.

"[It] took them eight minutes, very bold, during the day. Took the four tires, and just as casually as they drove in, they drove out."

Replacing the tires and damage to the car cost its owner around $1,500.

"When we talked to the police, they said it could have been done in 15 minutes."

A suburban mom was at the Buffalo Zoo with her husband and kids when thieves stole the tires off her SUV, right in the zoo's parking lot.

"We parked up close. We asked everybody around, nobody saw anything, and all my tires were off my truck, and my running boards were even bent in half, because my truck was laying on the ground."

Replacing the tires, the SUV rims, and damage to her vehicle cost $4,500, and her family is still shook up. That's why she asked News 4 to conceal her identity.

"It kind of makes us nervous to go into these places because if this can happen at the zoo, this can happen anywhere," she said.

But there are ways you can keep your car from being the next target. One is wheel locks, which replaces one lug nut on each tire, and that can help keep tire thieves away.

Kevin Halt is sales manager for Orchard Park-based McGard, which is dominating the wheel lock market. Halt said they custom manufacture the locks for all of the major car makers. And they are the only ones made in the U.S.

"Remove one of the lug nuts on the car, insert your key into the lock," explained Halt. "Final tighten it down to the factory's specifications, and your wheels are protected from theft."

"For every car out there with wheel locks, there is a car to the left, and a car to the right without wheel locks. So usually a thief will attack the car without wheel locks. It is just too much work to get these off."