Toronto police advise locals to leave car keys near front doors to avoid confrontations with violent thieves

As car thefts have spiked in Toronto, local police are prescribing new safety measures so that locals can avoid violent encounters with thieves.

One of the recent bits of advice included Toronto Police telling residents of the town of Etobicoke to leave their car key fobs near the door to avoid being attacked in their homes by potential burglars.

According to police, the number of car thefts in the city has more than doubled in recent years. In 2023, more than 12,000 vehicles were reported stolen. In 2019, just over 5,000 were reported stolen.

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Toronto Police have been providing controversial advice to locals over a spike in car thefts in recent years.

Thieves have begun breaking into houses to steal keys in order to steal cars, prompting controversial prevention advice from Toronto Police Constable Marco Ricciardi at an Etobicoke town hall last month, according to City News.

During the town hall, Ricciardi advised that residents leave their car keys near the front doors of their houses so that they do not have to confront violent criminals, who he noted often have "real guns."

He said at the Feb. 27 meeting, "To prevent the possibility of being attacked in your home, leave your FOBs at your front door. Because they’re breaking into your home to steal your car. They don’t want anything else."

"A lot of them that they’re arresting have guns on them. And they’re not toy guns, they’re real guns. They’re loaded," he added.

Toronto Police sent out a memo clarifying these comments on Wednesday. The memo, published on the official Toronto Police Service website, also provided additional "Home Invasion Prevention Tips."

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Car theft has doubled in Toronto over the last five years. (Steve Russell/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

It stated, "An officer at a recent community meeting suggested that people leave the keys to their vehicle in a faraday bag by the front door. While well meaning, there are also other ways to prevent auto theft motivated home invasions."

"For additional context, in Toronto, home invasions and break and enters for auto theft occurrences rose 400 percent in 2023. Police are concerned about an escalation in violence, where all sorts of weapons and firearms are being used to steal vehicles, and that includes during home invasions," the page added, before listing other safety tips. 

This included instructions to "Park vehicles in garage, if possible," "Ensure your driveway is well lit and keep exterior lights on all night," "install a home security system — activate alarm on STAY when home and AWAY when out," and "Do not post on social media when you will be away on holiday."

Toronto Police responded to Fox News Digital's request for comment on Thursday, reiterating that Ricciardi's comment was "well meaning, and for context, was in response to the increasing number of violent home invasions and break and enters related to vehicle thefts."

A recent report from local outlet City News Toronto detailed how police in the York region of the city have been passing out doorstops as extra security against burglars that have been kicking in doors. 

Local reporter Michelle Mackey stated, "Doorstops have been handed out to some residents in an effort to prevent door kick break-ins to steal car keys."

A local resident told the outlet that being handed one of these doorsteps made her feel that her area was "very high risk" for break-ins.

Police in other parts of Canada have been slammed for giving unorthodox advice for locals dealing with criminals. Quebec’s local police force, Sûreté du Québec (SQ), advised residents in January not to share footage of thieves stealing packages from their porches to social media, stating that "could be a violation of private life."

SQ Lt. Benoit Richard stated, "If you get some proof that somebody might have stolen something, call the police, give that proof to the police. We'll do the investigation, bring that person to justice and file some charges." 

Gabriel Hays is an associate editor for Fox News Digital.