San Francisco DA Wants $1M To Fight Rash In Auto Burglaries

SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- District Attorney George Gascón announced Wednesday he will seek $1 million to fight the rash in auto burglaries in the region. The funds will support an auto burglary task force, he said.

“We know that a small percentage of individuals are responsible for the vast majority of auto burglaries in San Francisco,” Gascón said in a press release. “I created a Crime Strategies Unit within the District Attorney’s Office almost three years ago to go after the individuals who were responsible for an outsized portion of crime in our community, and it has successfully netted hundreds of major crime drivers in San Francisco and throughout the region.

Gascón also launched a digital tip line for victims and witnesses of auto burglaries. The tip line will enable individuals to send evidence to the SFDA’s Crime Strategies Unit , which will be assessed and analyzed in order to identify and tie repeat offenders to multiple crimes, Gascón's office said.

Criminal street gangs are behind 70 to 80 percent of all auto burglary incidents in San Francisco, the office said.

--Patch file photo