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The city of Minneapolis has seen a dramatic increase in auto thefts so far in 2026, causing rising pressure on Gov. Tim Walz and Mayor Jacob Frey to address the situation.
The worrying trend was highlighted by Crime Watch Minneapolis, a volunteer-operated news organization, which shared a graphic on X showing how widespread the problem has become throughout the city. More than 1,000 auto thefts were reported in January and February of this year in Minneapolis, a city of approximately 430,000 people. This represents an increase of nearly 35% compared to the same period last year, according to Crime Watch Minneapolis.
The trend appears to be continuing into March, with at least 14 reported auto thefts between 6 a.m. and 11 a.m. on March 14 and six more during the afternoon on that same day, according to the news site.
Over the last few months, Walz and Frey have made numerous statements attacking ICE and blaming federal immigration authorities for making the city less safe. Earlier this year, the two were the focus of a Department of Justice investigation into an alleged conspiracy to coerce or obstruct federal law enforcement during U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in Minnesota.
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Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz testifies during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing in the U.S. Capitol Building on March 4, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Additionally, Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara suggested to local media that Trump’s Operation Metro Surge was a “contributing factor” to the rise in auto thefts because “officers and investigators were consistently pulled from their normal assigned duties.”
“This isn’t an ICE problem,” retired Minnesota State Patrol Lt. John Nagel told Digital. “It’s a deterrence problem.”
“As a 30-year law enforcement veteran, I can tell you this: auto theft goes down when city leaders make it a priority and criminals know there will be consequences. We’ve seen that in St. Paul, where focused enforcement drove car theft down sharply, while Minneapolis is back over 1,000 auto thefts in just the first two months of this year.”
Nagel, running for Congress as a Republican against Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar in Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District, told Digital that Frey and Walz have “spent years making excuses, undermining deterrence, and tolerating a revolving door for repeat offenders—especially juveniles.”
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Minneapolis auto theft locations in January and February 2026 compiled by Crime Watch Minneapolis. (Minneapolis Crime Watch)
“If you want fewer stolen cars, you need more officers, proactive policing, prosecutors willing to act, and a juvenile system with the capacity to intervene before these kids become career criminals,” Nagel said, referencing the understaffed Minneapolis Police Department that has been severely understaffed since losing 40% of its ranks after the death of George Floyd in 2020.
A Minneapolis Police Department spokesperson acknowledged to Digital that the department “continues to be understaffed” and pointed to differences between Minneapolis and St. Paul, including the policy that MPD does “not pursue stolen vehicles.”
The spokesperson also reiterated the claim from Chief O’Hara that Operation Metro Surge was a “contributing factor” and said that the 1,196 auto thefts in the city year to date break down into: “Non-Kia/Hyundai vehicles taken without keys — auto theft up 59%, Kia/Hyundai taken without keys (ignition peeled and punched) auto theft up 25% (313 vs 251), Keys-In auto theft up 18% (291 vs 247) cases. Victim said they left vehicle running, attempted auto theft up 10% — 99 this year vs 90 last year. Car not actually stolen.”
“While the recent spike earlier in the year reversed the trend somewhat, the rolling 12-month data still shows that auto thefts remain 38% below their mid-2023 peak,” the spokesperson said, adding that the city “is also seeing signs of a broader nationwide trend involving the use of key-programming technology to steal vehicles.”
Digital reached out to the offices of Walz and Frey for comment but did not receive a response.
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A general view of downtown Minneapolis. (Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
A spokesperson for County Attorney Mary Moriarty told Digital that motor vehicle thefts are “really tough for police to solve,” noting that only about 3% of cases result in an arrest, making “deterrence much less likely.”
The spokesperson added that the office launched an initiative in mid-2023 in response to a spike in car thefts and said University of Minnesota research later found a 58% drop in cases involving teens stealing cars since the program began, though the official said multiple factors likely contributed to the decline.
“It takes a very wide-angle lens and adherence/interest in what the data actually indicates to properly address these dynamics,” the spokesperson said.
