41 car-jackings

In 2009, there were eight separate car hi-jacking incidents recorded by the PSNI, in 2010 there were 14 and in 2011 there were 19 incidents recorded by police.

The figures were released by the PSNI in response to a request made under the terms of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act. The figures also show that there were a total of 424 incidents of car-jacking recorded by the PSNI.

147 of these crimes took place in 2009, 127 took place in 2010 and a further 150 took place in 2011. The majority of car-jacking victims throughout Northern Ireland were male in these years, according to the figures released by the PSNI.

Police have issued advice on how to avoid becoming a victim of car-jacking: “Carjacking, although uncommon, is distressing for the victim. You can help prevent yourself being a victim of carjacking by- keeping your doors locked in built-up areas and keeping the windows wound up, especially at traffic lights; being aware of what people around you are doing; driving to the next garage or police station if someone tries to pull you over for no reason, you think someone may have ‘accidentally’ bumped into your car, aiming to get you out of your car so they can steal it, or someone appears to have broken down or had an accident, particularly in an isolated area. Always report your concerns to the police.”