Police arrest 3 they say are behind multiple car thefts at Atlanta’s airport
www.wsbtv.com, July 10, 2025
ATLANTA — Police say they are one step closer to dismantling an organized crime ring operating at the world’s busiest airport.
Investigators announced on Thursday the arrest of three people they believe are responsible for stealing more than 50 cars at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in less than five months.
“You got to be one step ahead at all times,” said Igor Abramov, who works at Gravity Autos.
Abramov and his team are reviewing evidence photos that police released showing the tools thieves are using to steal cars like Jeeps, Dodges and high-end GMs.
“You never know what kind of software there is to duplicate keys,” Abramov said.
The Atlanta Police Department said officers were executing a search warrant over the weekend when they found a Dodge Challenger that was stolen from the airport on July 4.
During that search, they found tools that allow someone to program universal keys to start certain cars along with stolen guns, drugs and money.
They arrested three people: Leon Thomas, Amar Brown and Gerald Tiller.
Each are accused of being part of a group that has stolen more than 50 cars at the airport since February.
“We believe they was choosing the airport because it was having a large concentration of vehicles at the time,” Lt. Rodney Jones, Jr. said.
Jones said he believes the three people arrested over the weekend replaced four suspected thieves they arrested in May, and officers predict 12 more suspects are still working the airport car theft operation.
“We know right now, at the lower levels, those individuals are quickly just receiving money for a service, but we want to know what the end goal is and how that operation comes together,” Jones said.
To figure that out, police said they have to let some of the stolen cars go to track who ends up with them and why.
“You can actually protect yourself from this,” Jones said.
Car dealers who are used to protecting valuable product agree.
They suggest going to your local dealer and asking workers to disable the feature that allows you to use multiple keys to unlock and drive the car.
“There’s definitely some solutions,” Abramov said.
He said you should also ask your dealer for any software updates.
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