POLICE have once again urged Islanders to lock their cars after two cars were taken from a home in St Saviour on New Year’s Eve.
While some were celebrating the start of 2026, police said an “opportunistic” group of young people took a blue Audi and a silver Honda Jazz from a home in Five Oaks.
The two cars were reported missing from the owners’ home in the morning. The JEP understands that both cars have now been found.
Police said there had been a rise in “taking and driving away” crimes, with both cars and bicycles becoming targets. St Saviour and Five Oaks residents should take extra care, they said.
“There is a risk to Islanders,” a States police spokesperson warned, adding that not locking cars could invalidate insurance if it were to be “taken, damaged or cause damage”.
“Although we live on a very safe island, there are individuals who choose to commit crimes, let’s not make it easy for them,” they said.
Last month, police chief Robin Smith had warned of “complacency” leading people to leave their keys in their cars – and making them easy targets for joy riders.
Police have reported a 25% increase in 2025 in cases of vehicles being taken away by joyriders with 85 cases of suspected “taking and driving away” – the official term for “joyriding” which distinguishes it from “larceny” or a permanent theft.
Recently, a car was taken and found badly damaged in St Ouen at the northern end of the Five Mile Road. A 15-year-old male has been arrested and charged and will appear in the Youth Court this month.
