HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The Houston Police Department warns you not to try to recover your stolen items. They face staffing issues, which means not all crimes will be evaluated.

Christian Briones recently had his car stolen and now wonders if he’ll ever get it back.

“It looks like we’re on our own,” Briones said.

Briones went to practice early Monday morning and returned to his stolen car. Fortunately, his wallet, which contained an Apple Air Tag, was inside the vehicle.

RELATED: The owner of an allegedly stolen Dodge Charger chases the suspect and fires fatal shots, deputies say

“I put it in my wallet just in case. I feel like people steal wallets all the time, or you might lose it somewhere,” Briones said.

He tracked the Air Tag to a house in HPD’s jurisdiction and called the police. He waited down the block to point to the officers’ house. After ten hours, he said he finally got a call from the police asking if he wanted any more help.

“It’s obvious. What do you think? I’m here without a car and of course I need help,” Briones said.

Briones said that as far as he knew, the police had not yet done anything in his case. In a recent PSA, HPD said people chasing their stolen property is on the rise and they want people to stop.

“Avoid confronting the suspect even if you know who he is. Stepping into a volatile situation can make things worse,” the HPD video advises.

It’s safe and smart advice that people should follow, but those ABC13 spoke with aren’t confident they’ll ever get their stuff back if they follow the advice.

“I feel like it’s pointless at this point. I feel like it’s not going to happen,” Briones said.

SEE ALSO: Fed Up With Mail Theft, Woman Sends Her Apple AirTag As Bait And Catches Suspects

Former HPD Acting Chief Larry Satterwhite said earlier this year during the suspended case scandal that they don’t have the manpower to investigate all property crimes.

“We don’t have enough to do all the crimes,” Satterwhite said.

According to HPD data, in 2023, 99,123 property crimes were reported, but only 5,664, or about 5.7 percent, were cleared. So far this year, there have been 68,671 property crime reports, but only 3,648, or about 5.3 percent, have been cleared.

ABC13 asked HPD about the cases they were unable to investigate, but they did not respond. They only sent a statement that said:

“The Houston Police Department takes every crime in the city seriously. While we prioritize protecting lives and reducing violent crime, we recognize that the vast majority of crimes reported to HPD are property crimes. Like many law enforcement agencies, HPD faces staffing challenges in patrol and investigations that are well documented and have a direct impact on clearance rates. To address these challenges, we leverage technology and actively collaborate with other agencies and our community to maximize our resources. Prevention is crucial and we encourage citizens to report any crime.

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