Residents of the Westchester town of Harrison were left rattled last month after someone was seen moving up and down Woodside Avenue, opening the doors of just about every car parked along the street. In at least one case, the person did not stop at rummaging through vehicles but drove one of them away entirely, leaving neighbors with a deep sense of violation.
Some of those affected acknowledged that they had left their cars unlocked, making them easy targets. But the case that has drawn the most concern involved a vehicle at Frank Morano's house, where only the driver's side door came open. That detail suggested the intruder was not simply trying handles at random but was using a key or some other device to get in.
Neighbors described a telltale sign of the intrusions. They said they could see the lights of a targeted car flash as the person got close, moments before the doors were accessed. In the Morano case, the driver's side opened while the passenger side stayed locked, pointing again to a deliberate method rather than opportunistic door-checking.
Investigators believe the incidents may be part of a broader pattern spreading across the region. Earlier in the month, police in Stamford, Connecticut, issued a public safety bulletin warning that people had been breaking into cars using electronic key programmers, devices that are normally the tools of legitimate auto shops.
Those programmers are ordinarily used by mechanics to make spare keys, but authorities say they are becoming easier and easier for ordinary people, including criminals, to get their hands on. As one longtime observer noted, locking the doors of an older car used to be enough, but today's thieves are far more sophisticated and technologically equipped.
To reduce the risk, Stamford police recommended a set of precautions. Beyond not leaving anything valuable inside a vehicle and parking indoors whenever possible, they suggested using a physical lock that fits over the keyhole or the steering wheel, and placing an AirTag in the car so it can be tracked if it is stolen. Residents acknowledged such measures mainly slow thieves down rather than stop them outright.
In the Harrison case, there was at least some resolution. Police believe they identified those responsible and made arrests, taking into custody two people identified as Jamila Meade of the Bronx and Michael Ramos of Staten Island. For neighbors who now check their vehicles every night, the episode has underscored how quickly familiar security habits can be outpaced by new tools.