Gas thieves siphon from cars

VAN BUREN COUNTY, Mich. (NEWSCHANNEL 3) - Some folks living in Van Buren County say that thieves are sucking the gas right out of their cars, and it's happening while they're parked right next to their homes.

Newschannel 3 has gotten reports of this occurring around 46^th Street and County Road 388 near Bloomingdale.

It's a sign of the times as shady, perhaps desperate, people try to get their hands on whatever they can.

Newschannel 3 spoke to a victim on Thursday.

"You go through your everyday routine and you miss these obvious warning signs," said Ingrid Stroud.

Stroud says that at first she didn't notice the missing gas; an eight of a tank, even a quarter of a tank disappearing could be chalked up to many things, poor gauge readings, bad mileage. But, when her gas bills literally didn't add up, her husband found damage to their cars, and a half tank missing overnight.

The Strouds suspect that thieves siphoned the gas from their cars.

"I think it's not fair," said Stroud, "I know that everyone's down on their luck right now, especially in Michigan, with jobs and unemployment, I don't like it. It feels terrible and I feel bad for the people that have to steal.

For many, the disappearing gas is puzzling, yes, gas is expensive, but not like it was in the summer of 2008.

At Bloomingdale's only gas station, Julie Logan was filling up to help a friend who'd run out, and said she's not surprised that thieves are pinching petrol.

"I just think it's awful," said Logan, "people are having such a hard time right now, with the economy how it is, me myself, I'm unemployed, it's hard to make things stretch.

Bloomingdale's police chief hopes that people will report it when gas thieves strike.

"Always call the police, because if we don't know, we're not going to be able to stop something like that,' said Chief John Josten. "A lot of crimes go unreported, so it's always best to give us a call and we're always happy to take it."

"It's becoming a common everyday thing," said Stroud, "the economy's terrible, people are without jobs, and I think we're going to see this more and more often."

Stroud's neighbor says thieves siphoned gas from her son's car as well, and people in the area told Newschannel 3 that there's been all kinds of petty theft lately.

Some in the area are considering getting locking gas caps, they can cost anywhere from $30 to $70, and most dealers are able to outfit cars with them, depending on the make, model and age of the car.