Crime trend: Thieves target truck tailgates

HOUSTON – Several Houstonians have fallen victim to a new crime trend -- thieves stealing high-tech tailgates and leaving the trucks behind.

Stephanie Burke's home is nestled in the Galleria area. Her mother and stepfather came to visit a few weeks ago, but left without their tailgate on what was basically a brand new truck.

"He had a bad feeling and came out at 4 o'clock in the morning," Burke said. "The tailgate was gone, the Yeti cooler was gone. He had the lock on the tailgate and there were no marks. Nothing."

Burke asked around her neighborhood and discovered her family isn't alone.

"I do know of two other friends on Potomac that had their stolen, too," she said.

Detectives with the Houston Police Department say they are seeing more and more of these tailgate thefts, and they're going after some pricey equipment.

"The tailgates they are really targeting are attached to the pickup trucks with the rear camera system," said Officer Jim Woods, with the Houston Police Department's Auto Theft Department said. "Those are the ones that cost anywhere from $4,000 to $5,000 to replace from the manufacturer."

Victims are finding many of the stolen tailgates ending up on Craigslist.

"So I go on Craigslist and sure enough that evening is the same exact tailgate that was on there," Burke said. "The price was $1,500. The next day they lowered it to $1,200."

Police say it's difficult to track down these tailgates because they're not made with the VIN number etched on them.

Now Burke's mother is having to wait six weeks to get their tailgate replaced. They were told they're on backorder because of so many thefts.

The long delay is just the beginning. Replacing these tailgates with cameras can cost $4,000 to $6,000.

So, what can you do to protect yourself besides locking your tailgate?

"The easiest thing you can do is we tell people to reverse the hinges," Woods said.