Soaring car thefts hit Atlanta's airport

ATLANTA - Motor vehicle thefts are on the rise at the world’s busiest airport. FOX 5 has been reporting on the number of thefts over the past month.

By March 21, the number had risen to 81. Atlanta City Council members say they are aware of the situation and are looking for answers. 

"It would have never crossed my mind that it could happen," Ben Williams said. 

Like so many others, Williams thought his car was safe and secure inside the parking deck at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. 

When he came back from a trip last week just before midnight and went to go find his car, he was in for a shock when it wasn't there. 

Williams found a security guard. 

"The security guard said, 'Oh, well, I think that might have been stolen because I came up on it the night before and people were trying to break into it. I guess they ran off and chased them off, and he couldn't get a license plate for it," Williams explained. 

The security guard told Williams he believes the men came back for the car.

"He said that what's common is someone will bring in a second car and then steal yours and piggyback through the gate. The cameras don't typically catch the second car because it takes one shot for each car," Williams said. 

Atlanta City Council responds to spike in car thefts at airport

So far this year, 81 cars and counting have been stolen from Atlanta Police Department's Airport Zone.

The majority of the incident reports come from the North and South Terminal decks. 

"The airport cars are literally sitting ducks for those who want to pursue this type of activity," Councilman Michael Julian Bond said. 

Bond says it's an issue that's come up over the past six months during the Atlanta City Council Public Safety meetings. The airport is usually known for low crime.

"Make sure we have increased police patrols in our parking decks. We need more cameras and license plate readers for those entering and exiting the parking decks," Bond suggested. 

Bond says the city council has asked the airport general manager to hire an additional 20 off-duty officers.

There's also what's called a Public Safety Atrium Task Force for the airport that meets monthly. The next is Thursday at 11 a.m. at City Hall.