Bountiful Thieves Target Gym Parking Lots

BOUNTIFUL, Utah – Surveillance video, taken outside a gym, near 500 south, and 100 west, shows two men exiting a van in the early morning hours. Both quickly can through the parking lot, with hoodies covering their heads, as police say they look through car windows for valuables.

“They’ll just take a quick peek in the cars to see if there’s anything of value, and then it’s a smash and grab,” Bountiful Sergeant Andrew Bryson said. “They’re pretty quick about it.”

Bryson says the department has seen a recent rise in auto thefts in parking lots that see short-term traffic, especially outside gyms, were people stop in for about 40 minutes to an hour at a time. Bryson says drivers need to do their part to make themselves less-likely targets.

“Don’t leave anything that you don’t want stolen in your vehicle, because they will smash your $300 window, to get your $10 pair of fake Oakleys,” Bryson said. “If you absolutely have to leave something in your vehicle, lock it in the trunk.”

A gym patron Thursday morning, Paula Parrish said the video was a bit upsetting to see.

“It’s just shocking, how brazen they are, and how quickly they go from car to car,” Parrish said. “I’ve had my car broken into, not at the gym, but another place, and had a lot of things stolen, so yeah, it’s kind of disturbing.”

In addition to looking for easy loot, Bryson says the thieves are also quick to spend other people’s money, through credit and debit cards.

“They’re hitting Wal Mart, they’re hitting the gas stations. They’re using that card before the person even realizes that it’s been stolen,” Bryson said. “I took a report from a victim a couple of weeks ago, who within about fifteen minutes of it being reported; $1,200 dollars was charged up.”

Bryson said no arrests have been made so far in these recent cases.

If you have information, contact Bountiful police at 801-298-6000.