A string of car robberies on Staten Island are using what police say is a simple technique to target their loot.
Groups of thieves are making their way across the borough looking to steal cars and every stolen car starts the same way.
Surveillance footage shows a thief jump into Rob Romeo's car parked right in his driveway. By the time Romeo reached the front door, the thief was already gone.
"A stranger is getting in your car in broad daylight, I have a wife and kids and you're concerned for their safety as well as your own," Romeo said.
His story is not unique on Staten Island.
"We are seeing an increase in grand larcenies and grand larceny autos that's really been plaguing Staten Island," Chief Joseph Gulotta said. Car thieves, he says, are targeting specific makes and models: BMWs, Hyundais, and Hondas.
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The uptick in heists is seemingly driven by thieves stealing unlocked cars with the key fob inside.
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"We are looking at some homegrown perpetrators but also perpetrators coming from New Jersey," Gulotta said.
The NYPD is now working with police in New Jersey to put the brakes on the thefts.
"What we are seeing is they steal a car in New Jersey, they bring it over here, and then they go around looking for other cars to steal," the chief said.
In Romeo's case, his family did not leave the key fob inside the car, but they did forget to lock it up -- a simple mistake they will not make again.
Driving through neighborhoods, getting the message out over loudspeakers, Detective Tom Kelly is part of the team reminding neighbors to lock their doors. Kelly also says using an air tag.
"You can locate it immediately on your phone, you contact the police, tell us where it is and more often that not we are able to recover those cars," Kelly said.
Drivers who use an AirTag are advised by police not to leave it out in the open where anyone can see it; make sure to hide it.
