Youth car thefts up 150% in Bexar County amid social media challenges
SAN ANTONIO - Children as young as 10 years old are stealing and destroying cars across Bexar County and documenting the whole process on Instagram.
As we approach the end of the school year, officials fear this trend may only get worse. Fires, street stunts, and destruction... The social media challenge known as "Kia Boyz" has made its way to San Antonio streets. It shows people how to steal your car without access to your keys.
Some models of Kia and Hyundai cars are susceptible to this because they lack an anti-theft device, making it easy to hotwire them without their key present.
We met one San Antonio woman named Erica who became a victim of this challenge in February. She left her apartment to go to work and realized her car was gone. She asked that we not show her face for fear she'd be targeted again.
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"I was just completely freaking out," she told us.
When police found out it was a Kia, she says they immediately knew the car was stolen.
"They just told me it's a bunch of teenage kids and this is known all throughout Texas," Erica said. "And there's nothing that they could do about it."
It was a crushing message for someone who fully relies on their vehicle.
"Not only do I go back and forth to work with it, but I do DoorDash, Instacart, so I needed that extra money to get back and forth," Erica said.
Her car was found about an hour later.
"The steering column was damaged completely. It could barely drive..." Erica said.
But what really stuck with her... The thieves left their Instagram handles marked on her roof.
"They're just on some 'catch me if you can' things and taunting the police," Erica said.
Not everyone is lucky enough to get their car back. They're often found in pieces, if they're found at all. So far this year, Bexar County Juvenile Court judge William "Cruz" Shaw says the number of youth referred for car theft is up 150% from this time last year.
"We're also seeing, most recently, that they're becoming more organized," Shaw says of the teen thieves. "It's more sophisticated than it used to be."
Shaw attributes this to kids getting smarter and social media trends.
"Things have changed," Shaw said.
Officials say groups of teens get into a car and head to places like malls, grocery stores or schools, then each one rushes to steal a car and get away.
It may only take a matter of minutes.
"Some kids are being caught with, you know, 50 to 100 fobs in their pocket, because they know they can get into a car using those fobs," Shaw said.
Shaw says teens may do this for money or notoriety.
The San Antonio Police Department declined multiple requests for an interview, but Chief William McManus told city leaders he needs more help in the vehicle theft unit.
"18 folks for a million and a half population. That's just not enough," McManus told the Public Safety Committee.
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Erica and other victims of these crimes are calling for more action from police and prosecutors.
"Punish them. That's what we're paying our tax dollars for anyway," she said.
And for the people posting these videos...
"They always post it, we see it, and they're brought back in to have to suffer the consequences," Shaw warns.
Chief McManus told city leaders they're expecting an analysis of where more officers are needed, and he wouldn't be surprised if vehicle theft is at the top of that list.
Car makers like Kia and Hyundai are offering anti-theft software for these cars, but it could take months for your make and model to be eligible.
The software updates the theft alarm software logic to extend the length of the alarm sound from 30 seconds to one minute and requires the key to be in the ignition switch to turn the vehicle on, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Hyundai will also provide its customers with a window sticker alerting would-be thieves that the vehicle is equipped with anti-theft protection.
Hyundai's website says nearly 4 million vehicles are now eligible for the software.
You can learn more about the Kia schedule here and the Hyundai schedule here.
In the meantime, the parts needed to fix the damage are hard to come by.
We've spoken to several victims of car theft who were told they'd have to wait about six weeks for the necessary parts to arrive because of the volume of people in need.
Shaw tells us car theft typically goes up in the summertime. Though he hopes the numbers go down in the coming months, without the anti-theft software widely available, he fears things could get worse.