Portlanders take matters into their own hands to find stolen cars

By Adrian Thomas

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    PORTLAND Oregon (KPTV) — A Portland woman has launched her own crusade to battle the out-of-control problem of car thefts.

She says he has now helped hundreds of her fellow Portlanders track down their stolen cars over the last year or so.

According to the latest PPB data, just in January and February alone in 2023, 1,789 vehicles have been reported stolen across the city.

This trend has led to large groups of Portlanders connecting on Facebook to help each other track down stolen vehicles. FOX 12 caught up with one couple who tracked down their stolen SUV quickly using PNW Stolen Cars.

Thursday morning was a chaotic one for Darla Guillory and her partner after they say their red SUV was stolen overnight.

“Went to go to work at about 4:30 in the morning and no car!” said Guillory. “Taken right from the street right in front of our house.”

Guillory says she called police, her insurance company, but also posted in PNW Stolen Cars, a massive Facebook group that is partially run by Portlander, Sara Jane, who helped Guillory track down the car just several hours later after it was spotted in Northeast Portland thanks to the Facebook group.

“Within, it seemed like a half hour to an hour, it was recovered,” said Guillory.

Sara Jane says she got involved with helping track down stolen cars about a year ago when her neighborhood was dealing with theft issues. Jane says it is a hobby that has been nonstop, and that makes sense with the number of cars she says she has helped find in the last year.

“I would say, hands-on, either I’m calling it in privately or I’m talking to the owner, or I’m driving the owner to their car, about 980,” she said.

Jane says she does not get compensated for helping recover stolen cars, but it is something she says she simply has a passion for. She has even built a close relationship with a local tow company that will come out to wherever she is helping with a recovery. Jane says she’s hooked on helping others.

“Some people crochet, they paint, that’s kind of boring to me, I like adventure,” she said. Just my personality as a caregiver so, I like to help, that’s my affirmation.

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