Regina police chief Troy Hagen frustrated by rise in car theft

Regina's police chief says despite many public warnings, one-third of all the stolen vehicles in the first six months of this yearhad the keys left in them.

Troy Hagen presented the latest statistics from Regina policeto the city's mayor Wednesday duringa meeting of the board of police commissioners.

They show 562 vehicles have been stolen in Regina so far this year, a 9.6per cent increase over last year at this time.

"It's really quite frustrating for us," Hagen told reporters. "But I think the community should be frustrated as well, that people continue to leave keys in vehicles."

From Jan. 1 to June 30, 2015, Regina police noted 364 vehicle thefts in the city. Thirty-three per cent of the stolen vehicles had been left with the keys inside.

A police spokesperson said "inside the vehicle" includes keys left"in the ignition, the glove box, in the console, in a visor, under the floor mat somewhere inside the vehicle."

Police are working on a new awareness campaign to discourage the practice of easy access to car keys.

Hagen says the biggest concern is the safety risk of having more stolen vehicles on the road.

"More often than not, they're either underage,they don't have any driving experience, no driver's licence [and]they're sometimes under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs," Hagen said.