AUSTINTOWN — Car thieves operating in other parts of Mahoning County have made their way back into Austintown.

While Boardman has seen more than two dozen thefts and break-ins since the end of September, thieves are at work in Youngstown and Liberty Township, and police say there are connections among them.

“Between Youngstown and Liberty right now, the three of us are working together,” said Sgt. Greg McGlynn of Austintown Police Department. “I would assume it is probably the same group.

I don’t think it’s just one group, it’s several different groups.”

Last weekend, thieves who began their spree in Liberty ended up in Austintown, and on Tuesday seven vehicle-related complaints were reported, including a vehicle theft.

“The first incident was on the 10th and they continued into the 11th, but most people didn’t figure it out until the 12th, when they were reported,” McGlynn said.

McGlynn said suspects stole a 2019 Kia Optima in Liberty, then drove it to Austintown, where they abandoned it in the Central Park West apartments on Nantucket Drive. They then raided several vehicles in that complex and the nearby area, stealing a 2021 Jeep Trailhawk in the process.

In addition, a wallet was reported stolen from a vehicle on Rhode Island Drive; an attempted theft of a 2020 Kia Soul was reported on West Hampton Drive. Other reports included an attempted theft of a 2020 Hyundai Venue on Rhode Island Drive, a 2015 Nissan Altima stolen from Compass West; and an attempted theft of an undisclosed vehicle on Nantucket.

That Jeep was left unlocked with the keys in the ignition, McGlynn said. The vehicle was involved later that day in two police pursuits in Youngstown.

During the second pursuit, a male was seen fleeing from the vehicle, and Youngstown police deployed a drone to find him using his heat signature.

Seandale Thompkins, 18, of Youngstown, was arrested and charged with fleeing and eluding, a third-degree felony, and receiving stolen property, a fourth-degree felony. McGlynn said police are still securing evidence to prove Thompkins stole the Jeep.

On Tuesday, Boardman police also reported a white sedan matching the description of one seen in Austintown, full of males wearing black clothing and ski masks. The vehicle was seen driving slowly along Hillman Way with the windows down. A witness told police that males matching the same description ran toward the Hillman Way apartments from the direction of a nearby Burger King. Witnesses in Austintown — on Nantucket — described the same vehicle and a tall male in black clothing and a ski mask.

McGlynn said Thompkins has a record of receiving stolen property and auto theft dating back to his juvenile years. He is one of several recently released from Mahoning County Juvenile Justice Center, where they spent time for vehicle-related crimes.

McGlynn said he believes the same group and several others are at work again.

“But we have nothing to prove it yet,” he said. “We do have some video, and they are all younger males.”

McGlynn said the group ranges in age from 15 to 18 years old, and he suspects there are at least three different groups of three to five working around Mahoning County.

“It’s a handful, I’d say, about three to five, it depends on the night, but they are never acting alone,” he said. “It’s usually someone driving, and two to three riding along, and so they have the bodies to steal as many cars as they can get guys to do it.”

He said the thieves also are getting smarter.

“They’re dressed all in black, with their faces covered, wearing gloves, long sleeves, so they’re not leaving so much evidence behind,” he said.

McGlynn said several of the juveniles who were arrested last year were caught by fingerprints or DNA. The method of theft for the vehicles they are targeting – mostly Kia and Hyundai models because of a design flaw that makes them easy to steal – involves removing the steering column cover and using a USB cable to start the ignition.

McGlynn said several of them left fingerprints on the steering column cover or USB cables, while others cut themselves when they broke the vehicles’ windows and left blood in the cars.

Last year, Austintown Police Lt. Shawn Hevener told The Vindicator the township dealt with at least 40 vehicle thefts between August 2022 and October 2023.

McGlynn said Kias and Hyundais still represent the vast majority of the thefts and attempted thefts they see, but actual thefts are down this year because many Kia and Hyundai owners have taken their cars in to get a security upgrade that nullifies the USB method.

“That’s why we’re seeing a lot more attempted thefts and fewer successful thefts,” he said.

“Hopefully, within the next year they all get updated and we don’t have to deal with this anymore.”

Officials recommend using steering wheel locks as a visible deterrent, even after obtaining the software upgrade.