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Undercover NYPD Cop's Kia Optima Stolen In TikTok Car Theft Challenge
Offbeat
Jan 2023
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Undercover NYPD Cop's Kia Optima Stolen In TikTok Car Theft Challenge
Undercover NYPD Cop's Kia Optima Stolen In TikTok Car Theft Challenge
The group of thieves took the unmarked cop car on a 12-hour joyride.
An undercover New York City Police Department officer's unmarked Kia Optima was stolen by four thieves and taken on a 12-hour joyride before crashing the vehicle, according to the New York Post.
It is suspected the thieves took inspiration from the ongoing TikTok Auto Theft Challenge, a trend that began last June. As previously reported, thieves discovered a weakness in several 2011-2021 Kia and Hyundai models using a simple screwdriver and USB charging cord.
Earlier this week, we learned that major insurers like Progressive and State Farm would no longer issue new policies for several of these models in St. Louis, Missouri, and Columbus, Ohio. A group of teenagers who prefer to call themselves the "Kia Boys" originated this troubling trend.
And now an NYPD officer has become one of the latest victims.
In this case, the thieves took the unmarked vehicle from - wait for it - outside of the 45th Precinct's Detective Bureau at around 12:30 a.m. last Tuesday. The car was finally recovered at 11:20 a.m. when patrol officers located it thanks to its tracking device about four miles away, and a chase immediately ensued. The thieves managed to crash the Kia into several parked cars in the Bronx before fleeing on foot.
Police managed to question two people they have reason to believe were involved, but neither has been charged. Older Kias and Hyundais are targeted because they have turn-key ignitions rather than a push-button start system.
Evidently, this makes them vulnerable.
