Launceston is no stranger to car theft with the region being a consistent victim of some of the state's highest number of vehicle thefts.
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Tasmania Police information shows that in December alone there were 52 motor vehicles reported stolen in the North.
Throughout 2020 there were 420 reports of vehicle theft in the Northern police district, an average of 35 a month and more than one a day.
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Tasmanian Police Detective Acting Inspector Nick Clark said, despite 39 of the 52 cars stolen in the North in December being recovered, vehicle theft was a persistent concern.
"We're always concerned about motor vehicles being stolen," he said.
"We must remember that these vehicles may be a person's only mode of transport and it has an effect on them and the way they move around in the community."
The Northern suburbs of Launceston have tended to cop the brunt of vehicle thefts in recent years, and data from the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council showed that the 2019-20 financial year in Launceston was a rough one.
In Launceston there were 44 thefts in 2019-20, up 28 from the year before.
In Ravenswood there were 32, a 200 per cent increase from the previous 12 months.
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In Mowbray there were 45, up from 29.
Newnham saw 30 thefts, an increase of three, while Invermay was hit hard with 38 thefts, up 17.
Detective Acting Inspector Clark said Tasmania Police believed they were aware of the offenders who were committing the alleged thefts.
"We always try and target any recidivist [repeat] offenders," he said.
"We know who our main offenders are and unfortunately it's a small number of people who are committing most of these crimes in the state.
"We like to be aware of who those people are at all times and target them and try to stop them so they can't commit more crime."
While it may seem strange that police tend to know who the offenders were, charging them was not so easy.
Detective Acting Inspector Clark said building up a body of evidence strong enough to lay charges could take time.
"We have to have evidence before we can charge someone - evidence we can present in court to try to convict someone," he said.
"We may suspect, or strongly suspect in some cases, who we think we know has committed an offence but we can't arrest and charge them until we have enough evidence to put the charges before the court.
"Sometimes it takes a while to gather the evidence needed but the main thing is we are catching these people."
Inspector Clark said overall the Northern police district had a strong clean up rate, evidenced by the recovery of 39 of the 52 cars stolen in December 2020.
He said there were also steps vehicle owners could take to keep their vehicle safe.
"The main thing is we want to remind people is don't make your car an easy target for thieves. Don't leave your keys laying around, wherever possible park it on the street and even better if you can, in a lock-up garage, don't leave valuables in the vehicle ... and consider an immobilisation device."