Police investigate rash of downtown St. Louis car thefts

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- St. Louis police are once again investigating a rash of car thefts in the downtown area.

Police say that since the first of the year, thieves have broken into 61 cars parked in downtown garages. Seven cars have actually been stolen from the downtown area.

A year ago, the department's Crime Suppression Unit zeroed in on downtown after a rash of car break-ins and thefts. At that time, the unit placed about 40 detectives in plain clothes around downtown to try and catch the thieves.

Police say the thieves typically target unlocked cars or opened windows. A homeless man was caught in a break-in last week.

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Information from: KMOV-TV, http://www.kmov.com