If your car is broken into or stolen usually you’re the one to notify police, not the other way around. But, that’s what happened to one Montgomery County man and his family early on Friday morning.
The criminals weren’t successful in stealing the car in this case, but Cheltenham police say at least one vehicle was stolen overnight.
Investigators believe both incidents are connected to a social media trend that targets certain cars.
“We got a call last night and the police came to our door knocking, like, ‘do you own this Kia?’ So we found out it was broken into,” Elkins Park resident David Coe told NBC10.
Coe’s 2022 Kia is now undriveable after the incident.
Cheltenham police officers were patrolling his street when they first made the discovery around 1 a.m. Friday morning.
“We came down and the first thing I see is the passenger side window all smashed in and the glass splattered everywhere,” Coe explained.
The steering column and ignition were ripped out sending parts all over the place.
Cheltenham police say it’s part of a dangerous trend that circulating on TikTok where thieves target certain makes and models of Kia and Hyundai cars.
But, whoever did this eventually realized there was no way they were getting away fast with this newer model Kia.
“To be out of a car all of the sudden like that, it’s really inconvenient. It’s really frustrating,” Coe said.
And, the most frustrating part of this situation for Coe and his family is that the club they typically use to deter criminals was in the car but not secured on the steering wheel.
“We normally do put it on. Occasionally we do forget, we’re human. But in most cases, it’s on the car, especially at night to prevent things like this,” Coe explained.
And, while this father of 12 is lucky his car can be fixed, he’s still taken aback by the whole experience.
“It’s such an invasion, also. I came down and it felt like a part of me was invaded because this is our car,” he said.
Coe recommends that everyone secures their car no matter where they live. As for the repairs, he does have insurance but will likely have to pay out of pocket for some of it.
