Police boost patrols near apartment complex after rise in car thefts

Residents at an apartment complex in the city's East Fall section say enough is enough. They're tired of their complex constantly being targeted by car thieves and vandals. But they say the request for increased security has hit a roadblock. Actually, the Port of Calangoggen has more. We all know that car thefts and car break-ins are problems here in the city of Philadelphia. We report on them time and time again. But in this particular case, we're talking about thieves targeting one apartment complex parking lot and because of that, Philadelphia police tell me that they've had to step up patrols in this area. Set up on a hill off Rittenhouse Street, this massive apartment complex in East Falls has hundreds of units and hundreds of cars parked throughout the property. I've personally never experienced anything bad, no break-ins or anything in my car. But that's not the case for everyone who lives at Rittenhouse Hill. Philadelphia police say there have been dozens of reported issues of car break-ins and thefts at this complex in recent years. Last year, there were reports of 21 car break-ins and three cars stolen. So far this year, police say eight cars have been broken into and seven have been stolen. I want them to increase security. Jonathan Hale is one of the unlucky ones. In July of 2024, his Honda was stolen from the parking lot. Multiple other cars were broken into around that same time. Just a few months later in October, his new car was broken into. And I believe there was at least 10 to 15 other cars at the time that were broken into the same day. Hale had been fine until last month when his car was broken into again. All four tires were stolen. He says a week later, another Honda Accord in his lot was targeted. Days after that, other tenants had their cars broken into. They're frustrated and have brought it up to management. So far management really has not done anything. We spoke with the property manager who referred us to Post Brothers, the company that owns this complex and seven others in the city of Philadelphia. We are now waiting to hear back from them. I heard nothing back. And so is Hale. He says he has made many attempts to get them to reimburse him for the thousands of dollars he has paid for repairs and to step up security here. I want to come home and feel safe, not have to worry about whether or not my car is going to be there or be destroyed the next day. Hale says to make matters worse, every tenant at this complex has to pay to park in that parking lot. He says that this week he filed a lawsuit against the owner of the complex in small claims court. He also tells me that he has filed a consumer complaint with the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office. In East Falls, I'm Caroline Goggin, Channel 6 Action News.