Blue City Mayor Has His Car Stolen for the Second Time
Democratic Mayor Mike Johnston of Denver, Colorado, had his car stolen once again in October, a representative for Johnston’s office confirmed Tuesday.
The representative, however, refused to release more information about the theft, including the location where it occurred, in order to “protect the safety of Mayor Johnston and his family,” according to reporting from KDVR.
The car has been recovered, the mayor’s office said, KCDO-TV reported.
Last month was not the first time Johnston had his car stolen.
According to a 2017 social media post on X, an SUV painted orange and blue and belonging to Johnston was stolen at an Office Depot store on 35th Avenue in Quebec Square.
The mayor at the time asked social media users to help him find his vehicle and to call 911 if they came across it.
According to KDVR-TV, it was not clear if the vehicle stolen in 2017 was ever recovered.
Colorado leads the United States in motor vehicle theft, the Rocky Mountain Insurance Information Association reported.
Auto theft rose in the state by 17.2 percent in the first half of 2022, the association said.
The Colorado cities of Denver, Aurora, Westminster, and Pueblo were among the top 10 cities in the country for auto theft as of 2022.
The rate of car theft in the state, according to RMIIA, was 4,007 thefts per month as of last year.
On July 1, the state instituted a new law strengthening penalties for repeat car thieves and those who steal automobiles to use them for other criminal activities.
Under the law, CPR News reported, those with two or more prior convictions of car theft can be charged with a class 3 felony should they steal a vehicle again, with a penalty ranging between four to 12 years imprisonment.
Those who steal a car and then damage it, move the car across state borders, or use the stolen vehicle for another crime can be given two to six years imprisonment.
Previously, in Colorado, a car theft’s severity was determined based on the stolen vehicle’s value.
A theft of a car worth under $2,000 would usually have only been considered a misdemeanor at the time.
“A crime is a crime,” Democratic state Sen. Rachel Zenzinger told CPR News. “It doesn’t matter if you’re a moderate income person, a low income person — if your car has been stolen, it’s going to impact your life, and sometimes pretty dramatically.”
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