You won't believe why thieves in Costa Mesa are targeting this type of pickup truck

COSTA MESA, Calif. - Police in Costa Mesa are warning about a concerning rise in theft, and the thieves appear to be targeting a particular model of pickup truck. 

Between April and May, the Costa Mesa Police Department said, 20 tailgates were reported stolen in the city. Nineteen of those stolen tailgates were taken from Toyota Tacomas. Police Wednesday shared surveillance footage of two suspects involved in one of the thefts. 

It happened sometime between 7 p.m. on May 12 and 8:15 a.m. on May 13. A man took the tailgate from a gray 2016 Tacoma parked on the 1000 block of West Wilson Street. The video showed the man carrying the tailgate back to a black Honda sedan, putting it in the trunk, while another suspect was seen sitting in the Honda's passenger's seat. 

Surveillance footage showing suspects stealing the tailgate off a truck on May 12 in Costa Mesa. (Credit: Costa Mesa Police Department)

SUGGESTED: 

• Crooks using Facebook Marketplace to scam SoCal car buyers; officials look for more victims
• Honda key fob flaw allows hackers to remotely unlock, start certain vehicles
• Hyundai, Kia owners face threat of theft due to social media challenge
• Majority of drivers in US back anti-speeding technology in cars, survey finds

Anyone with information about this theft or any of the others in the city is asked to contact investigators at 714-754-5205.

Officers said that people who own pickup trucks can protect themselves from this kind of theft by remembering to lock your tailgate.