By Jesse Jones
In Rio Rancho, car thefts and break-ins have dropped, likely due to police crackdowns.
The City of Vision has seen an 11.4% decrease in property crime as a whole over the past two years. Motor vehicle thefts fell 27.5% and thefts from vehicles dropped 56.5%, according to the Rio Rancho Police Department’s 2024 Annual Report.
“I say continually that solving crime, it’s a statewide problem, but it’s a local issue,” Mayor Gregg Hull said on the Mayor Hull Podcast. “You have to attack it head on, whether you’re Rio Rancho, Albuquerque, Los Lunas, Belen, Española, Las Cruces, Hobbs, Chama… you have to address this on a local level.”
Rio Rancho has doubled its police budget in 11 years, excluding a $2 million public safety bond, according to Hull. The department added officers, aides and staff to curb crime.
Police need the right resources to fight crime and keep it from spreading, he said.
According to the report, Rio Rancho’s Property Crimes Unit (PCU), part of the police department’s Criminal Investigations Division, investigates property crimes with one sergeant and five detectives.
According to the FBI, property crime includes burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft and arson — offenses involving stolen money or property without force. Arson is included because it destroys property, though victims may be harmed.
After Larceny, the second most common crime in the U.S. is motor vehicle theft, according to the Pew Research Center. Property crime is far more common than violent crime, with 1,954 property crimes per 100,000 people in 2022 compared to 381 violent crimes per 100,000 people.
Most crimes go unreported, and most reported crimes aren’t solved. The Bureau of Justice Statistics said about eight-in-ten motor vehicle thefts (80.9%) were reported in 2022, making them the most commonly reported property crime.
According to the 2025 Rio Rancho Adopted Budget, RRPD’s property crime clearance rate — the percentage of how often officers solve reported crimes — was 53% in 2024, up from 40% in 2022, after dropping to 13% in 2023. That 13% clearance rate in 2023 mirrors the national average, where police cleared 13% of property crimes in 2022, according to Pew Research.
Motor vehicle theft in Rio Rancho fell 27.5%, from 214 in 2022 to 155 in 2024. Thefts from vehicles saw the biggest drop, down 56.5% from 343 to 149.
According to the report, theft of auto parts, including stereos and catalytic converters, dropped to zero this year from 13 in 2022 and four in 2023. A new state law requiring sellers to show ID when selling catalytic converters may have helped curb these thefts.
Albuquerque reported 5,848 motor vehicle thefts and 4,003 thefts from vehicles last year.
Derek Underhill, Hull’s podcast co-host, said the higher rate may be linked to thefts from motels along highways, noting Rio Rancho lacks major highways.
Hull said the Albuquerque Police Department is “horribly understaffed,” making it hard to respond quickly. Criminals may take advantage of slower response times, which is why APD relies more on deterrents than officers.
“I laughed when I saw the bait car,” Hull said. “They’ve been using bait cars near the mall for years. It’s a great idea and I hope it’s helping reduce crime. With so many officers around, they might try to steal a car, but they’ll get caught.”