The city of Ottawa is witnessing a rise in car thefts this year, with more than 1500 cars stolen in the first nine months.

Marcin Witschurek, a resident of Barhaven, had his car stolen while it was parked in front of his house, "a new Jeep Wrangler." His daughter woke him up after hearing noise outside and seeing a black SUV parked next to their home. Witschurek said, "The person was wearing some kind of white gloves, and they had a set of devices. They went to my car that was parked on the side, and after 10 seconds, they left." He tried to catch up with them but they disappeared, and he called 911.

One night on the same street, just a few doors from Witschurek, a 2022 Ram 1500 Laramie pickup truck was also stolen from Lee Tony Buglis. A nearby security camera captured the theft. "An $83,000 truck disappeared, and now it’s just a nightmare."

The video showed that the entire truck theft took about eight minutes only, and Buglis will face additional costs to replace the truck, as interest rates have increased since he originally bought it.

The number of cars stolen from Barhaven to Orleans and across the city has increased.

Vanessa Lauren, who lives in Orleans, said: "I heard a bang, but I thought it was some kind of car, like a passing car, and I went back to sleep." The family had their 2021 Jeep Grand Cherokee stolen.

Lauren said: "With a baby, I rely completely on that SUV to go to my appointments or anything else."

In the first nine months of 2022, there were more reported car thefts to Ottawa police than the total number for each of the past four years.

According to Ottawa Police data as of September 26, 1502 stolen cars were reported. There were 1185 vehicle thefts reported in 2021, 951 thefts in 2020, 1007 thefts in 2019, and 1019 thefts in 2018. "With all the security and safety, it was all in vain."

Witschurek says: I couldn’t believe someone could come here and steal the car so quickly. Thieves can use technology, such as accessing the onboard ignition port or capturing the signal from your car to program a new key fob.

Bryan Gast, V.P. of Investigation Services at Equite Association, an organization working on behalf of insurance companies in fraud and theft investigations, says: "All cars can be stolen, especially push-button start cars." It’s not just one brand or one type of vehicle that thieves target.

"Really, anything that represents a high-quality car again, pickup trucks, SUVs, and luxury cars top the list of all manufacturers." Once thieves get away.

Many head to the Port of Montreal. "Many vehicles we see stolen from Ontario and Quebec are believed to be specifically targeted for export purposes abroad."

Gast says: The more layers you create to slow down or deter a car thief, suggestions include using a steering wheel lock, modifying the onboard ignition port, immobilizing your car using an unwanted lock if available, parking in your garage if you have one.

He also says that installing a GPS tracker can serve as a deterrent and help police find your car.

Ottawa Police reported that the top cars stolen in Ottawa this year were: Honda CRV, Lexus/Toyota, Jeep Cherokee, Dodge Durango, Ford pickup truck, Lincoln, Acura RDX