Giannoulias Awards $11 Million to Fight Carjackings and Vehicle Theft

SPRINGFIELD — Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias announced more than $11 million in grants to six law enforcement agencies to combat rising carjackings and vehicle thefts. Funded through the Illinois Vehicle Hijacking and Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention and Insurance Verification Council, the grants support salaries, vehicles, computers, GPS trackers, body cameras, drones, and investigations into title fraud and scrap or body shops. Last year, the funding helped recover $65 million in stolen vehicles, support over 3,000 investigations, and generate more than 500 criminal charges. Since the program began, Chicago carjackings have fallen from 1,852 in 2021 to 379 so far this year.