ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) – The city of Rochester is seeing a sharp decrease in the number of stolen vehicles since the beginning of summer.

It comes about a month after law enforcement agencies in our area joined together on a task force dedicated to apprehending suspects for those crimes.

According to Rochester police, the number of stolen Kia and Hyundai vehicles in the city was at nearly 400 in June. By the end of August, that number was down by about 150. Now, three weeks into September, RPD has taken in 50 vehicles.

In late August, MCSO and RPD joined forces with Monroe County probation, along with Greece, Irondequoit and East Rochester police departments. Since then, the task force has made 14 felony arrests, seven misdemeanor arrests, and has captured about two-dozen warrant suspects.

Members of law enforcement credit those efforts, along with tactics like the creation of Monroe County’s JEDS program, which launched in the spring. The initiative allows probation officers to work with juveniles accused of these crimes until their appearances in court.

“We can’t rest. We can’t call it good enough and rest on it. We’re going to continue to work with our officers on the street. The crime analysis center is continuing to put more and more information out,” said Lt. Greg Bello with RPD.

“The detail is out there. It’s still going strong, and even if the numbers are down, they’re not down enough for us. One is too many,” said Deputy Brendan Hurley with MCSO.

The following figures were provided to News 8 by the Rochester Police Department, showing the number of Kia and Hyundai vehicles stolen in the city from the beginning of 2023.