Chimney Hills neighbors frustrated after repeated car thefts they think are linked to child

TULSA, Okla. — Residents in Tulsa's Chimney Hills neighborhood are growing increasingly frustrated after a string of vehicle break-ins they believe are linked to the same juvenile suspect.

"I didn't hear or know about them until it happened to my car," said Samantha Almy.

In September, Almy's locked car was stolen out of her driveway. The thief bashed out a window to get in, smashed out the steering column and hot-wired it to start the car.

The most recent theft happened Sept. 28. Almy said she captured the suspect on home surveillance video.

Footage shows someone looking around her vehicle before returning hours later with the car out of the driveway, waving at the camera.

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"He ripped off the little key fob here, so this is no longer attached, so I have to take these lovely pliers here and just twist and that's how I start my car," she said.

Almy told 2 News that Tulsa police informed her that the suspect is a 12-year-old tribal citizen. She said officers also told her she was not the first Chimney Hills resident to report a stolen vehicle.

"Pretty much everyone is in uproar because he steals someone's car, we file a police report, the police catch him or they literally know where he lives, and then nothing gets done and then he's back out the next night doing it again," said Almy.

Other neighbors shared a number of incident reports dating back to July. The residents reported incidents illustrate a pattern of broken windows, damaged steering columns and vehicles left with the driver's seats pushed all the way forward.

After reviewing those reports, 2 News contacted both Tulsa police and the Muskogee Nation Lighthorse Police Department seeking information about the investigation and what actions are being taken.

“He has to think it is a game because he’s done it so many times and there’s no consequences to his actions," she said. "They, again, I want to make it known that Tulsa Police Department have done a wonderful job. We’ve seen them patrolling the neighborhood all hours of the night, but then they catch him doing it and tribal police comes out here and lets him go immediately. And like I told you, the next two nights after that, he was busting someone’s windows out again.”

Neither agency responded before this story aired.

Almy said she's spent about $800 out of pocket on repairs and now keeps her car locked inside her garage whenever possible. While she said TPD increased patrols and monitored the neighborhood, Almy believes more needs to be done.

"The system is failing this kid," she said. "We're paving the way for him to get into more trouble. How long are we going to gamble with this kid's life before he chooses the wrong house and somebody chooses to shoot first and ask questions later?"