Couple has SUV stolen from them twice in one night

MADISON, Wis. - A Range Rover was stolen twice from its owners twice within the same night, Madison police say.

A man called police Wednesday evening after he noticed his SUV driving slowly down his street. He and his wife live on Settler's Road, which is on Madison's west side.

The couple used another one of their vehicles to search for their stolen SUV, Madison police said in a news release.

The vehicle was found empty on Swallow Tail Drive. The keys, which had initially been left in the SUV, and a wallet left in the vehicle's console were missing. Because of this, the husband stayed with the vehicle while his wife drove back to get their spare set.

As she returned home, the woman noticed two young men running from the house. She told police she also spotted a white Audi SUV pull out of her neighbor's driveway as the men ran away.

Madison officers later determined the Audi was stolen out of the town of Sun Prairie.

The wife called her husband, who was still standing by the Range Rover, to let him know about the burglary.

Madison police said he ran back to the house to check on things, but by the time he returned home, the Range Rover was gone.

The couple told police it did not appear that anything was stolen from their home.

Madison police also determined the Audi involved in this case was one stolen out of the town of Sun Prairie.

In Madison, there have been 20 stolen vehicles this month, said Joel DeSpain, a spokesperson with the city's police department. Of the 20, 16 had left keys inside, DeSpain added.

Madison officers have made it a priority to arrest prolific car thieves. Eight people have been arrested for stealing cars in Madison this month. This is in addition to the 12 others arrested this month by other law enforcement agencies in Dane County, DeSpain said.

Here's a breakdown of car thefts in the Madison area.

Central District – 1

East District – 3

South District – 4

North District – 2

Midtown District – 5

West District – 5

The car theft from Wednesday night is one of those that happened in the West District.