'It's got to stop': Bay Area law enforcement beats drum on gun thefts from unlocked cars
TAMPA, Fla. - Just days ago, a 23-year-old mother of two was killed by her brother on Christmas Eve in Largo over presents. Now, Tampa Bay area law enforcement is beating the drum on unlocked cars, where criminals – including teens – often steal guns.
"It's got to stop," said Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri.
Every agency keeps stats differently, but Gualtieri said in the last 30 days, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office had 17 reports of guns taken from unlocked cars.
RELATED: Teen shoots, kills sister in Largo during dispute over Christmas gifts
Deputies with the Polk County Sheriff's Office have taken reports of 113 guns stolen from cars this year, of which two-thirds were likely unlocked.
The Tampa Police Department have been told of 191 guns stolen from unlocked cars in 2023.
"I've never seen it this bad as it is with the number of crime guns that are on the street and the number of shootings and the number of people that we come across that are illegally carrying guns," said Gualtieri. "And again, they're getting them out of cars as primarily where they're coming from."
Pinellas County deputies believe the suspects involved in the shooting that left their 23-year-old sister, Abrielle Baldwin, dead in Largo over an argument about Christmas presents got their guns from unlocked vehicles.
Officials said one of two things often happens after a gun is stolen from an unlocked car. Authorities said many times a teen uses it to commit another crime, or it is sold on the street, for anywhere between $50 and $300.
Gualtieri points out that a gun taken from an unlocked car in Jacksonville in 2014 was used to kill Tarpon Springs Officer Charlie Kondek.
"The problem is don't steal people's stuff," said Gualtieri. "But the reality is, is that you got punks like this out there, criminals out there like this that are doing it and going to do it, and then they're going to go and hurt people."
Gualtieri does not say there should be legal penalties for those whose unlocked guns are used to commit other crimes. But when teens target cars with pro-Second Amendment bumper stickers and steal guns, local law enforcement said the Second Amendment comes with responsibility.
"Y'all know I'm a big Second Amendment guy," Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd said in October. "You can't own too many knives or too many guns, but you've got to be responsible."