Fort Worth police say car thefts rose from 2023 to last year, and new maps show exactly where most cars are being stolen in the city. As the department warns people about the steps they can take to protect their vehicles, some people who’ve had their car stolen in Fort Worth say more needs to be done to protect drivers. While living in southwest Fort Worth, Katie Crum woke up one morning to find her daughter’s car was gone, stolen out of their driveway while they slept. “We kind of just assumed we’d never see it again,” said Crum. Two weeks later, Crum said the car was found by police. “There was drug paraphernalia throughout, bolt cutters, dirty needles,” said Crum. It’s one example of what appeared to be a growing issue: in a new report issued to the city council, Fort Worth police said from May to October last year, car thefts rose 4% compared to the same period in 2023. Police said Chevrolets made up the most stolen cars, followed by Kias and Hyundais. “We need to keep in mind that Fort Worth is a growing city,” said Daniel Segura with the Fort Worth Police Department. “And some of these maps that you will see on the city council presentation, they show some of the hot zones.” Maps from the police department used hot zones denoted in red to show the areas where the most thefts were happening. They included the I-35 corridor heading into downtown, as well as the area surrounding two malls: La Gran Plaza along I-35, and the Hulen Mall in southwest Fort Worth. “A lot of those areas are malls, high-traffic areas by visitors,” said Segura. Police said drivers could take steps to protect their cars from thieves, including always locking the doors, parking in well-lit areas, and making sure valuables can’t be seen through the windows. Some victims believed police needed to do more to reverse the rise in stolen cars. “The police presence needs to be felt much more in this area than it is,” said Crum. The Fort Worth Police Department said it was taking several steps to address the issue, including using bait vehicles in hotspot areas to lure would-be thieves, strategically placing marked and unmarked police cars as deterrents, and identifying blind spots in need of surveillance cameras or license plate readers. “If we take the opportunity away then we can actually lower the numbers,” said Segura. NBC 5 reached out to both La Gran Plaza and Hulen Mall to ask what security measures they have in place to deter vehicle thefts. “While we cannot speak to the surrounding areas, we have a robust security program at Hulen Mall that includes all parking lots and garages,” the mall said in a statement. ‘We do not publicly discuss the ins and outs of our security program but can assure our shopping center community that our protocols have been effective in reducing any vehicle theft on our property.” La Gran Plaza says it’s working on a response.