For the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a decrease in carjackings in Prince George’s County, Maryland.
According to Malik Aziz, the county’s police chief, the county saw a 33% drop in 2024 compared to the previous year.
“When we look at what happened in 2019 before the pandemic … carjacking wasn’t a thing,” Aziz said. “It was very low.”
According to crime figures obtained by WTOP, there were just 93 carjackings in Prince George’s County in 2019. That number exploded after COVID, going up to 263 in 2020 and even reaching 550 in 2023.
Last year, the county investigated about 340 carjackings.
That is still high compared to before the pandemic, but Aziz expressed relief that the county seemed to have “finally turned the corner.”
“The escalation of it has been nothing short of some phenomenon, not just in Prince George’s County but in some of our neighboring jurisdictions,” Aziz said. “I’m hoping to see a greater decrease for next year.”
Aziz repeatedly described it as being a “violent crime.”
“A person takes a weapon and puts it to your face, your body, and takes your property,” Aziz said. “You have trauma for a long time after.”
According to Aziz, the police department’s efforts to drive down carjackings included the creation of a special carjacking unit and increased awareness from patrol officers.
In 2024, Aziz said the county’s police department arrested 74 adults in connection to carjackings, which was a 36% decrease from the previous year. There were 147 juveniles arrested — the same as in 2023.
“We didn’t see an escalation and it’s staying flat,” Aziz said. “That’s a small positive.”
Aziz went on to acknowledge the frustration and challenges associated with preventing carjackings.
“If we had the answers to what it would take to stop a person from being a criminal, then what are those?” Aziz said. “There are many people who say, ‘Oh, open it up and we’ll have jobs, and we’ll create another environment.’ … I think we’ve done those things, so I don’t know what the real answer would be.”
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