Car thieves target locksmiths for steal key fob programmer

Car thieves have set their eyes on a new target: Milwaukee locksmiths.The latest one to be robbed at gunpoint was Tuesday night.Police said they think the thieves are targeting the computers used to program key fobs on newer cars.It was the second armed robbery in four days. Fearing retaliation, the owner of Lucky Locksmith spoke to WISN 12 about the armed robbery but asked not to be identified.”As soon as my technician arrived on site, he got surprised by two armed men,” the owner said. “At that point, they took all his belongings and stole the work vehicle.”The thieves drove off with the key fob programmer at North 36th Street near West Hampton Avenue just before midnight.The owner said there was still fingerprint dust from where police pulled evidence from the van.Armed robbers targeted another van and one of his other technicians Friday night in Milwaukee. Locksmith Diego Barrera said he was taking extra precautions after being robbed at gunpoint earlier this year.”They pushed me back from the car, showed me the gun, his gun,” he said.WISN 12 asked why the key fob programmer was sought after.”Basically, they can program 70, 80% of the brands — Dodge, Ford, Nissan,” Barrera said.Milwaukee police sent a bulletin to other police departments warning that “The equipment targeted has the ability to plug into any vehicle’s ignition to program key fobs and override a vehicle’s security system to start a vehicle.”Police also said car thieves have been using stolen key fob computers in the Chicago area since September of last year. They re-encode key fobs and bypass security systems on vehicles.So far, no arrests have been made.Police have not released any other information.

https://www.wisn.com/article/milwaukee-car-thieves-target-locksmiths-to-steal-key-fob-programmer/37697553