Northern Queens Neighborhoods See Increase In Car Thefts: Data

QUEENS, NY — Car thefts are on the rise in many parts of northern Queens, according to NYPD data.

In the first five months of this year, 358 stolen cars were reported in the eight police precincts that cover the northern half of the borough, compared to 264 during the same timeframe last year, the data shows.

The number of car thefts has gone up each month since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the data: There were 83 in May, 72 in April and 58 in March.

Astoria's 114th Precinct saw the most car thefts of any area of northern Queens, with 63 from the start of the year through the end of May, but Bayside and Forest Hills saw some of the sharpest increases.

There were 28 car thefts reported in Bayside's 111th Precinct from Jan. 1 to May 31, versus 12 during the same timeframe last year.

In Forest Hills' 112th Precinct, there were 31 car thefts in the first five months of this year compared to 12 in that time last year.

Burglaries in northern Queens have also gone up compared to last year: There were 687 burglaries from Jan. 1 to May 31, up about 46 percent from the same time last year.

Long Island City's 108th Precinct led the increase, with 70 burglaries in the first five months of this year compared to just 16 in that timeframe last year.

But, month to month, burglaries are going down. May saw 127 burglaries across northern Queens, down from a peak of 157 in April, according to police data.