Columbia police say 31 vehicles stolen between January, February

Columbia police officials are urging citizens to be wary of leaving their keys in their ignition of their vehicles after a rash of motor vehicle thefts have been reported throughout the city.

Columbia Police Chief Skip Holbrook said preliminary statistics suggest that from Jan. 1 to Feb. 15, 31 vehicles have been stolen because keys were left in the ignition. Police have been able to recover 23 of those vehicles.

Man of the incidents have been occurring in driveways and convenient store parking lots as motorists warm their cars up in the morning or make a quick stop at the gas station, Holbrook said.

So far, Holbrook said investigators have arrest warrants for 27-year-old Chasity Henry and 34-year-old William Taylor in connection with the thefts. Investigators have also developed identifications on several other persons of interest.

The theft locations are scattered throughout the city, including, but not limited to:

▪  North Columbia: parts of Duke Avenue, Sunset Drive, Alida Street, Easter Street and other parts of the Greenview Community.

▪  South Columbia: Superior Street, Sims Avenue, Harden Street, Millwood Avenue, Rosewood Drive and Garners Ferry Road area.

▪  Metro-downtown area: Gervais Street, Sumter Street, Barnwell Street and areas of Huger Street.

Holbrook urges citizens to not leave running vehicles unattended, to always lock your vehicle’s doors, to close windows and sunroofs, to not leave valuables in plain sight and to consider installing anti-theft devices in your vehicle.

This story was originally published February 23, 2016 at 2:34 PM with the headline "Columbia police say 31 vehicles stolen between January, February."