MATTHEWS, N.C. (WJZY/WNCN) — There is new information about weekend car dealership thefts in Henderson and in McDowell County that may have an important connection.
This past weekend, dealerships in Marion in the mountains and Henderson in Vance County were hit, and six cars were stolen. One of those cars turned up in Matthews, just outside Charlotte.
Video from Charles Boyd Chevrolet in Henderson shows three masked suspects breaking into the dealership using a rock, going straight to the key room, and making out with a brand-new Chevrolet Camaro, a 2023 Cadillac Escalade, and a 2023 Audi Q5, totaling around $235,000.
The Henderson thefts happened just before 1:45 a.m. Sunday — about 24 hours after three cars were stolen at a car dealer in Marion.
Brandon Boyd, Boyd Automotive Group’s Owner, is just one of the frustrated dealership owners affected by recent break-ins.
“We’ve got alarm systems. We’ve got surveillance cameras. I mean, we’ve got everything but the junkyard dog that lives in the showroom, and it still got breached,” said Boyd.
Since the beginning of February, there have been roughly eight different dealership thefts in the Raleigh area, Lexington, Hickory, Cornelius, and Charlotte.
One group of thieves hit a Rocky Mount dealership nearly a month ago — swiping a Jeep Trailhawk and a blue 2021 Dodge Charger wide-body Hellcat edition
Boyd has a hunch some of them may be connected.
“It’s like they’re targeting certain vehicles, and that’s what they’re going after. I don’t know if they shop for them or look for them online to see what dealership has got what, but it just seems to be a common thread that way,” he said.
In the other weekend car dealership theft, three people broke a glass door and entered the building early Saturday morning at Marion Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram, police said.
The thieves got keys to the cars by breaking into a lock box inside the building in Marion.
The Henderson Police Department worked with OnStar to track the Escalade to an apartment complex in Matthews. Boyd says the Audi also briefly pinged in Mint Hill but has not been recovered.
Henderson Police Chief Marcus Barrow later released a statement about the Cadillac.
“With the recovery of the Cadillac Escalade being in Matthews, N.C., we believe there may be a connection, and we are working with those agencies to determine if there is,” Barrow said.
Boyd said it was clear these thieves knew exactly where to get the keys and how to get cars out of the showroom.
“These guys knew exactly how to get the doors open,” he said. “They knew exactly how to position the car to get it right out of the showroom. They did a masterful job of stealing three cars.”
Boyd said Henderson police found significant evidence at his dealership, but as of Monday night, no arrests had been made.
