Texas Border Business
By Roberto Hugo González
June 26, 2025- At the recent McAllen Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs Series event, Chief Victor Rodriguez shared new insights into the city’s auto theft trends, positioning McAllen as one of the safest cities in Texas in this category. The data presented was part of the 2024 Annual Crime Report, which highlighted sharp contrasts between McAllen and larger metropolitan areas such as Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio.
According to Chief Rodriguez, McAllen recorded just 63 motor vehicle thefts in 2024. “That number may seem small—and it is,” he said. “But to fully understand how significant it is, you have to compare it with the rest of Texas.”
In his presentation, Rodriguez provided context. Houston reported more than 17,000 vehicle thefts in a single year. San Antonio exceeded 5,000, and Dallas logged over 13,000. “Houston is losing around 50 vehicles a day,” he explained. “San Antonio loses 38 a day. By comparison, we lose about five a month in McAllen.”
These numbers place McAllen far below the state’s largest cities, not only in raw totals but also in per capita terms. In 2023, Houston reported 866 motor vehicle thefts per 100,000 residents. Dallas reported 1,400, while San Antonio reported 1,290. McAllen’s rate was only 63.
Rodriguez addressed the long-standing perception that border communities are more vulnerable to auto theft. “The assumption used to be that if a car was stolen in Texas, it probably ended up in Mexico and probably came from a border town,” he said. “But the data tells a very different story. We are not the problem area. We are the model.”
One reason McAllen’s numbers are so low is the department’s aggressive and proactive approach. Rodriguez noted that every day begins with a 7:15 a.m. briefing involving senior leadership. “We review data in real time,” he said. “Last June, we spotted an uptick in auto theft—not just here, but regionally. We coordinated with state and federal partners and brought it down quickly.”
Part of that effort included an unprecedented level of federal involvement in local motor vehicle theft cases. “We got federal prosecutors involved in car theft for the first time in a long time,” Rodriguez said. “That was a game-changer. The people stealing these cars don’t fear local consequences as much. But they fear federal charges.”
He also introduced a topic often overlooked in crime reports: false claims of auto theft. “What we’re seeing more and more is staged thefts,” he said. “My rough estimate is that one in every two auto theft reports we receive may turn out to be false, meaning the owner orchestrated the event or misrepresented it.”
Because McAllen has a low volume of reported thefts, detectives are able to investigate nearly every case thoroughly. “That kind of follow-up reveals things you wouldn’t see in larger cities with thousands of thefts overwhelming the system,” Rodriguez said. “Having time to do real investigations means we uncover fraud more often.”
The chief emphasized that this investigative bandwidth gives the department a unique advantage. “In many major cities, officers simply can’t get to every case. Here, we can. And when we do, we not only recover property—we also prevent insurance fraud and eliminate repeat abuse of the system.”
When asked what contributes to the success, Rodriguez credited McAllen’s structure, leadership consistency, and culture of accountability. “The only way to keep crime like auto theft under control is to stay on top of it every single day,” he said. “We don’t wait for spikes to happen—we act as soon as we detect a change.”
Rodriguez also noted that broader factors, including video surveillance, license plate readers, and community vigilance, support the department’s efforts. However, he made clear that results ultimately come down to organization and execution. “There’s no magic to this. It’s the result of good data, good people, and a good process.”
In conclusion, the report makes it evident that McAllen’s auto theft strategy is not only successful by local standards but is outperforming some of the most resource-rich police departments in the state. “If your car gets stolen in McAllen, we will likely investigate it thoroughly,” Rodriguez said. “That’s not something many cities can honestly say.”
