The Madison Police Department issued a citywide warning Thursday cautioning motorists of recent auto-thefts that have occurred downtown.

There have been numerous crimes between March 9 and March 24 where cars have been broken into or vandalized, MPD spokesperson Joel DeSpain said.

“A lot of cars have been broken into in the Central District,” DeSpain said. “In some of these cases, there have been items of value in plain sight.”

According to DeSpain, some items stolen include a leather coat, an iPod, MP3 players, GPS units, portable DVD players and CDs. In some cases, cars’ windows have also been found smashed but nothing appeared to be missing.

Though he is unsure if any of the incidents are linked, DeSpain said the majority of the robberies have mainly taken place throughout the Central District.

If an item of value, such as a laptop, is resting on the front seat of a car in clear view, it is more likely that car will be broken into, DeSpain added.

DeSpain said there are also several incidents where perpetrators walked the streets looking for unlocked cars. In these cases, people are generally looking for loose change, he added.

However, the city is taking initiative to warn people of these incidents.

Ald. Eli Judge, District 8, said police officers are working on teaching car owners and tenants to exercise basic safety procedures.

“There are always programs to improve police traffic in the downtown and upgrade lighting to make it more impossible for crimes of opportunity,” Judge said.

At the end of last year, Judge authored the Downtown Residential Lighting Initiative, which provided grants to install lights on the sides and backs of downtown buildings.

“I think the Madison Police Department has been very good in the past in trying to identify trends, and when they see the trends, they adjust resources accordingly, especially if they see a trend static in one area,” Judge said.

Judge said in a perfect world, any police department would be able to do proactive policing all the time and there would be no crime.

However, randomness is the nature of crimes and crime patterns need to be analyzed and studied before a proactive plan is put in place, Judge added.

“The main thing is if you’re going to be leaving your car overnight and if things are in the car of value … bring them inside or put them in the trunk … or have a pack of CDs, put them under your seat,” DeSpain said. “If you put things in plain view, you are more of a target.”

Judge said he advises motorists to double-check that their car doors are locked and windows and sunroofs are shut.

For information regarding downtown crime, call Madison Crime Stoppers at (608) 266-6014.