WESTPORT — Motor vehicle thefts and break-ins, a persistent crime in town over the last several years, have been on the rise recently, prompting police to once again warn residents to take precautions.

The number of stolen vehicles and attempted thefts has increased over the last “several weeks,” police said in a Wednesday statement, noting that “cars that were stolen or illegally entered had been left unlocked.”

The warning to residents — routinely lock vehicles and do not leave key fobs and other valuables behind — has been issued repeatedly by police over the last several years as auto-theft problems spiked during the pandemic years.

The specific number of incidents reported during the recent rise in motor vehicle crimes was not immediately available. 

But one of the recent attempted thefts was described in Wednesday’s statement as follows: “…  five masked individuals were observed entering a garage and attempting to steal the vehicle inside. The group came to the area in a car which had been stolen from another jurisdiction.”

Another example of the problem was illustrated by new charges filed last month against two men already arrested on a lengthy set of charges in connection with a violent home invasion and carjacking on Bayberry Lane last September.

On April 3, Vincys Baez, 20, and Garrett Gibbs, 22, both of Waterbury, were charged with stealing a black 2021 BMW parked on Church Lane last Sept. 16, which police said was left unlocked with the key fob inside. A day later, the two men, accompanied by a juvenile — Giovanni Lopez, who is being tried as an adult in the carjacking case — used the stolen BMW to tail the owner of an Aston Martin sports car as he drove to his Bayberry Lane home, where they assaulted the man and stole his car, according to police.

The latest motor vehicle thefts and related crimes are being investigated by Westport police detectives, with assistance from the Bridgeport Regional Auto Theft Task Force.

In the meantime, police have stepped up anti-theft patrols.

And, once again, police issued advice on steps residents can take to help curb the problem:

• Lock a vehicle as a matter of routine when it is not in use.

• Do not leave key fobs or any valuables behind after parking a vehicle.

• Motion-activated lights or overnight lighting can serve as a deterrent, and if possible, so are alarm and video-surveillance systems.

• Immediately report suspicious activity to police.

• Do not directly confront suspected thieves since they may react violently.