MADISON (WKOW) — Police say car thieves are attempting to disguise stolen vehicles from police detection by painting them a different color.
In one recent case, Madison police say a formerly bright blue RAV4 is now believed to have been spray-painted black.
Police are asking anyone to contact authorities if they see a black RAV4 that does not appear to have factory paint or to have been professionally painted.
If it looks like an amateur job, call 911 and do not approach it, police say.
The owners of the SUV believe a masked burglar was able to access their Milky Way home early Tuesday morning by using a garage door opener that was inside an unlocked car parked in the driveway.
The burglar, who was tall and thin and wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, was spotted by a family member who saw him through a cracked bedroom door. The suspect ran away after taking keys to a 2016 Toyota RAV4, which was stolen during the break-in.
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