Woman’s car vanishes from driveway

Whitney Reed said she thought her husband was kidding when he told her she may need a new car because her 2009 Toyota Corolla wasn’t parked in the driveway last weekend.

“You never really think it’s going to happen to you,” she said. “It’s really frustrating.”

Reed lives on Dewey Drive on the city’s southeast side. She said she parked her car late Saturday night after returning from a movie, and when she went outside at 3 p.m. Sunday to walk her dog, the car was gone.

Reed said to her knowledge, no one saw or heard the theft happen, and no broken glass or other evidence was left behind to show how her car might have been taken.

The car was locked with the keys removed, said Reed, and she couldn’t park it in the garage because the space was already in use. She said an exterior light failed to deter the thief, and an anti-theft device in the car apparently didn’t work.

“Unfortunately that night, I had quite a few valuables in my car,” she said. “My husband’s iPod. I just found out yesterday, I couldn’t find my iPod, so apparently it was in the car, too. Some hair supplies for my job, and a GPS.”

Reed said she is driving a rental until her insurance provides money for another car, and she plans to move out of the neighborhood eventually.

A police sergeant at the Sand Creek substation said three other vehicles were stolen in addition to Reed’s, within a 48-hour period. While he described that as “a little bit unusual,” he didn’t say whether there’s been a citywide increase in vehicle thefts.