4 classic cars taking part in Hot Rod Power Tour in Joliet stolen, 4 damaged, officials say

JOLIET, Ill. (WLS) -- Muscle cars worth a lot of money have been stolen and damaged in Joliet.

The cars were parked outside a hotel as their owners were taking part in the Hot Rod Power Tour.

ABC7 spoke to Joliet police about the heist.

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The Hot Rod Power Tour was at the Route 66 raceway on Monday afternoon. That evening, many of the drivers spent the night at hotels in Joliet, and police say that's where thieves stole four vehicles and seriously damaged four others.

The Hot Rod Power Tour features some classic muscle cars of the past along with some of the latest and greatest of the present. They drew a big crowd in Rantoul on Tuesday, the day after the show in Joliet where thieves stole several of the vehicles from a hotel parking lot.

"They're very high end vehicles, which makes them very appealing," Joliet police Sgt. Dwayne English said.

The cars were so appealing that a group of thieves tracked the cars to a hotel parking lot overnight Monday and made off with four of the cars. They apparently tried, but failed, to steal four others as well. ABC7 was told a hotel guest recorded video of the thieves on her phone and has turned that video over to police.

The Tri-County Auto Theft Unit is investigating the case. They believe this involves a relatively sophisticated group of thieves who knew what they were looking for.

"It became very apparent this was an operation," English said. "It just wasn't one or two people."

Investigators say the thieves broke into the cars by smashing the windows and using some device to start the cars without the keys. Police were called to the scene around 5:30 a.m., with the stolen cars already long gone. But investigators are confident they will find the suspects.

"Suspects who steal these cars or damage these cars are going to be sought aggressively," English said.

As part of the investigation, police are looking into whether whoever stole them scouted out the cars earlier in the day at the raceway.