ROCKY MOUNT, N.C. (WNCN) — A Rocky Mount car dealership larceny — with a chase and crash — brings the total car lot thefts in North Carolina to at least six, worth more than $1 million, in the last month.
The Rocky Mount theft happened Friday around 2:40 a.m. at the Rocky Mount Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram FIAT dealer at 1340 S. Wesleyan Blvd., according to Rocky Mount city officials.
Police were first alerted by an alarm at the car dealer.
“When officers arrived they found that the business was broken into and suspects stole two vehicles,” Rocky Mount city spokesman Kirk Brown said in a news release.
A Jeep Trailhawk and a blue 2021 Dodge Charger wide-body Hellcat edition were stolen.
While police were at the scene, a Nash County deputy spotted the Dodge and Jeep near Interstate 95 and West Mount Drive.
The deputy began chasing the stolen cars and the Jeep driver eventually crashed, police said.
The suspect jumped and ran from the Jeep, which was heavily damaged in the wreck, according to the Nash County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies and a K-9 team were brought to the scene, searching for hours, but the suspect was not found.
The Charger driver escaped in the car, which has not been found. No one was injured in the incident.
According to WJZY in Charlotte, car thefts from dealerships are on the rise in North Carolina.
The first occurred on Feb. 19 in Lexington. Thieves broke into Capital Chevrolet Buick GMC of Lexington, used a crowbar to break into the key lock box, and drove off with seven cars worth $344,483.
Then on Feb. 27, Adams Auto on Independence Blvd. in Charlotte was hit. The suspects drove vehicles from the showroom through the dealership’s doors, making off with a Maserati and three BMWs with a total value of about $300,000.
On Mar. 9, Modern Nissan on Statesville Road in Cornelius captured surveillance video of suspects driving off with an Audi and a Dodge Durango.
On March 13, a group of thieves took six cars from Mountain Mitsubishi in Hickory. The total value was nearly $500,000.
The most recent theft was Saturday when four people stole multiple cars from a Carlson Chevrolet in Red Springs, according to WBTW. Keys were taken from inside the officer and three cars — including a purple Dodge Charger — were stolen from the parking lot.
— WJZY contributed to this report