Colorado drivers targeted in fuel thefts, vandalism amid high gas prices
Pain at the pump is leading to headaches at home. With fuel prices remaining high, new cases of people stealing gas from parked vehicles in the Denver metro area. Whether it's gas being siphoned or holes being drilled in gas tanks, these thefts are now leaving behind hundreds of dollars in damages and empty tanks.
Ann and Steve Leighton live in Englewood and began noticing something was wrong with their car and its gas in the winter.
"We were experiencing our car like getting two miles to the gallon, and we're like, 'What's going on?'" said Steve. "You just filled up and the next morning, you didn't go anywhere, and it's got a quarter tank."
They believe thieves siphoned and pulled gas directly from their vehicle's gas tank at least a dozen times.
"It was happening for at least three or four months, and then that's when he suggested the locking gas cap," said Ann Leighton.
Other residents have had their gas tanks drilled and drained. Sebastain Gould lives in the University Hills neighborhood in Denver. He noticed the problem when he drove off several weeks ago and was dropping his kids off at school.
"As I'm driving, I started to smell gas," said Gould. "So, very clearly, something is wrong with the car. You check behind the car and see the dripping."
He took his car to the shop, where a hole was found drilled in his gas tank.
"Turns out, there's this giant hole, about the size of a garden hose," said Gould. "It's just kind of sad, and it's frustrating, you know, with whoever did it, right? The price of gas doubled."
It's a growing problem that customers at Grease Monkey have come in with. Alejandro Sanchez, who works at the Grease Monkey off of Green Valley Ranch Boulevard in Denver, says higher clearance vehicles are targeted most often, or older vehicles without alarms. Repairs for damage can also be costly.
"If it's something that they damage more than just a fuel tank, it could be $2,000, maybe $2,500 with parts and labor, but if it's something that's a little less damage, then you're probably looking into about $1,000 or $1,500," said Sanchez. "In this area, we are seeing it a little more and more, especially with the gas prices going up."
"Nobody's got that kind of money. So, I went to the auto parts shop, I got a patch, and I patched the tank myself," said Gould. "I also think it's only a temporary fix."
Sanchez said there's not much that drivers can do to prevent it from happening.
"In cases like that, there really isn't anything to prevent stuff like that, you know, it's more of something, more of like you just keep an eye on your vehicle. Be knowledgeable about where you're parking," said Sanchez.
The crime is now driving residents to park in well-lit areas and install new cameras.
"I bought a camera. It's in my kitchen window, where it faces the car," said Ann.
"We'd been parking on the side street for convenience, but there are a lot fewer cameras on that side street, so that's definitely something that we try not to do anymore," said Gould.
Denver and Englewood police both say they have not received any reports of gas stolen in recent weeks. Denver police say stolen gas is not something they track specifically, but there have been four reported cases in 2026. Englewood police did have two reported cases in early May near the area of Galapago Street and Cornell Avenue.
Victims say, without evidence, they didn't report the crime because they felt like there was nothing the police could do to help.
Right now, the average price for a gallon of regular gas in Colorado is $4.16, according to AAA, which is down about 20 cents from a month ago.
