Police warn: An unsecured golf cart is easy pickings

Even after the theft of several golf carts during Labor Day weekend, some local law enforcement agencies have seen a slight decrease in golf cart thefts this summer compared with last year. However, officials say owners should take extra precautions when securing their carts.

"The easiest way to prevent theft is to properly secure your golf cart," said Myrtle Beach police Capt. David Knipes. "Store it in a locked garage, shed or other secure area where a thief cannot gain access to it. Make sure to take the keys with you and store them in a separate location.

"A lot of the thefts that we have are from hotels where the keys are left in the cart," Knipes said. "Someone sees this, takes the cart for a joy ride, and we locate it at a later time."

Last summer 50 golf cart thefts were reported in Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach and Brunswick County, N.C., compared with 30 carts stolen in those areas this summer, according to officials.

In Horry County, it is hard to say how many golf cart thefts there were this summer as they are lumped in with all vehicle thefts, according to Sgt. Robert Kegler with the Horry County Police Department.

But during Labor Day weekend, about eight golf carts were stolen in different areas of the county, Kegler said.

"In these thefts, it appears that the golf carts are being driven to a vehicle with a trailer, where they are then being taken away," he said.

Kegler said the golf carts were stolen from beach access parking lots and homes within the Garden City Beach and Surfside Beach sections of Horry County.

A little more than two weeks ago, Larissa Lewis' family golf cart also was stolen from a beach access parking lot in Garden City Beach, and some of Rhonda Bowers' neighbors have had their golf carts stolen this summer from her Oceanside Village gated community in Surfside Beach.

"We're fortunate that we haven't had our golf cart stolen," said Bowers, a secondary homeowner whose golf cart is kept at a secured post at her house with a chain and lock. "Our neighbors have had golf carts stolen. At first, they were stealing lift kits and bigger tires. Now it's whatever. It's been going on all summer, and we are tired of it."

Lewis, 24, of Slate Hill, N.Y., was vacationing in the area with her family when they came back from the beach Aug. 22 and found their golf cart gone.

Lewis said they were on the beach across from Calhoun Drive in Garden City Beach when it happened.

"We were very surprised," said Lewis, whose family has been coming to the area for more than 20 years. "We knew every key matched every golf cart ignition, but we had no idea that you could change the ignition."

Lewis said her father and boyfriend had just put a brand-new seat on the back row of the cart, which also had a lift kit on it.

"We've been here for many years and never heard anyone's golf cart being stolen," said Lewis, who said they had their cart for five years. "What frustrated me the most is that police said they go through it every summer."

Kegler said the cases this past weekend are under investigation, and anyone with information on the thefts is asked to contact detectives with the Horry County Police Department's Property Crimes Section at 915-5350.

"Horry County Beach Patrol is in the areas on oceanfront where there are a lot of golf carts being parked and stored, so officers are patrolling areas where there is a high volume of golf carts," Kegler said.

He said E-Z-GO is one of the most popular golf carts stolen because a lot of the keys made for E-Z-GO golf carts fit many other E-Z-GO carts.

"An E-Z-GO key starts all golf carts," said Sue Watson, sales administrator at Coastal Cars in Myrtle Beach. "It is not necessarily the way they look as to the ease of being able to take them. A lot of people that buy golf carts don't know about the E-Z-GO key. I try to tell customers about an individual key switch, so another key would not fit. There are so many golf carts out there that if given a deterrent, someone will pass it by."

In Myrtle Beach, there were five golf cart thefts reported in May through August 2009 compared with three this summer. North Myrtle Beach saw 34 golf cart thefts in June through August 2009 compared with 20 from June to Aug. 25 of this year. And in Brunswick County, N.C., there were 11 golf cart thefts from May to August 2009 compared with seven between the same months this year.

In North Myrtle Beach, spokeswoman Nicole Aiello said the decrease can be, in part, attributed to the fact that police were able to break up a golf cart theft ring this summer, and the Department of Public Safety has also increased its education on golf cart thefts in its neighborhood crime watch meetings.

In North Carolina, the Brunswick County Sheriff's Office Road Patrol units and Investigative Division "have been working diligently together this summer to decrease the amount of crime, especially in the summer months where our numbers seem to rise," said Sgt. April Stanley about the slight decrease in golf cart thefts in the county. "The Crime Prevention Unit has also been very active with the communities throughout the county. Citizens are being more watchful, not only for themselves, but for their neighbors as well."