The Police and Crime Commissioner for Suffolk has promised to redouble efforts against car theft after new figures showed a yearly increase in the number of stolen vehicles.

The data obtained from a freedom of information request to Suffolk Police by this paper revealed the numbers for the past three years.

In Suffolk between August 2021 to 2022 there were 445 reported instances of motor vehicle theft then in the 2022-2023 period there were 471 and for the 2023-2024 period there were 566.

This means there was a jump of 95 thefts since the last year, which Police and Crime Commissioner Tim Passmore said was “unacceptable”.

He explained the possible causes for the increase: “Part of the issue here is there are organised crime groups spreading out.

“I have been down to Felixstowe docks to visit the National Vehicle Crime Intelligence Service, and I am horrified at the number of vehicles stolen to order.

“There is also the opportunist element. People will always look to make a quick buck and do things illegally which is totally unacceptable.

“Having had a car stolen myself twice some years ago I know how inconvenient it is and victims feel defiled and that’s quite a thing to get over.”

Mr Passmore explained what has been done and what more will bed to tackle the problem: “We’ve developed the Kestrel Team two or three years ago to deal with lower level and neighbourhood crime and vehicle theft.

“We will continue to put resources into recovery of vehicles and that will be part of the new police and crime plan being drafted at the moment.

“It’s unacceptable and we ned to redouble our efforts to crack down on it.”

He added that car owners should also be cautious about where they keep their keys and locking their doors.