ALBUQUERQUE — Authorities say criminals are using stolen cars while committing a host of other crimes ranging from armed robberies to drive-by gang shootings in Albuquerque.
Police used to view auto theft as a nonviolent crime often connected to the need for money to buy drugs.
Now, crime rates have skyrocketed across the board.
The Albuquerque Journal reports the city has seen more than a three-fold increase in auto theft since 2013 along with climbing rates of armed robbery, larceny and burglary.