Auto thieves have been busier than usual in Montgomery County in recent months using advanced technology to steal property and cars.
Montgomery County police said thieves are targeting Kias, Hyundais, Infinitis and Hondas using expensive devices that can duplicate the signal from a vehicle’s key fob.
Montgomery County police call the devices “replicators.”
Police found one in a stolen car in Rockville, Maryland, according to a charging document filed in a 2024 auto theft case, describing it as a “autel electronic key programming device.”
They are not cheap.
“We are thinking about a couple of thousand dollars in order to access this, but that allows being able to steal tens of thousands dollars worth of a single vehicle,” said Capt. Cody Fields with Montgomery County police.
Fields said the thieves use the device to find signals coming from key fobs that will unlock car doors.
“And there is some trial and error with some certain vehicle types to figure out if that signal will gain access. […] The signal can trigger the remote unlock of the vehicle,” he said.
This technology is not new. In 2018, News4 first showed a video from a home surveillance camera showing thieves first moving one vehicle out of the driveway in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. before taking the car they wanted.
In Montgomery County, police said since the first of the year, officers have arrested more than 90 juveniles for stealing cars and more than 40 adults.
Car theft in the county is up 20%.
Police said to use a wheel lock, which are free.
“What we have started to do is we have our Auto Crimes Enforcing Unit, they are actually bringing boxes of free wheel locks to each police station,” Fields said.
Police are also encouraging residents to put a tracking device, like an apple air tag, in the car so police can attempt to recover it quickly.
Fields said in many cases, the thieves are using them to commit other crimes or just taking them for a joy ride.
