SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WAND) - The difference between car theft and hijackings is violence.
During a hijacking, victims are threatened with weapons or physical harm, and then their cars are stolen. Illinois State Police say they can happen at any time.Â
"A lot of times this stuff happens at night in dark areas, parking garages, so you want to try to wherever you're picking somebody up, try to park somewhere well-lit," said Illinois State Trooper Caleb Billingsley.Â
The more isolated the area, the higher the risk. Billingsley says jackers are causing fender-benders to catch victims. ISP urges drivers to keep their heads on a swivel. If you're stopped at an intersection, beware of people standing by canvassing the area. Â
"Somebody might hit him from behind. But it turns out that it's somebody who's just trying to get their car. And so you might stop in traffic, get out of your car, and then they come out, and then they hop right in, right into your car, take off," Billingsley said.Â
Billingsley said rideshare drivers can be easy targets because they are more isolated. Criminals can create fake accounts for rideshare apps to manipulate drivers to pick them up. In July, ISP received a $637,000 grant from the Illinois Vehicle Hijacking and Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention. In a couple of months, detectives recovered more than 200 hijacked cars. Â
"They're out there looking for these stolen vehicles, responding to the hijackings, looking for drugs, looking for guns, things like that in our higher crime areas. So that funding has been very, very important," Billingsley said. Â
If you're ever a victim of a hijacking, listen and let the car go.Â
"A car can be replaced. Your life cannot," Billingsley said.Â
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