--- title: "Thief Confounded When Trying to Steal Self-Driving Taxi" description: "A man was arrested after attempting — and immediately failing — to steal one of its self-driving cars in downtown Los Angeles." date: "2024-03-04" modified: "2024-03-04" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/thief-confused-steal-self-driving-taxi" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Self-Driving Vehicles" tags: - "cruise" - "los angeles" - "robotaxis" - "the digest" - "waymo" --- # Thief Confounded When Trying to Steal Self-Driving Taxi ![A man was arrested after attempting — and immediately failing — to steal one of its self-driving cars in downtown Los Angeles.]() *\Image: Waymo\* ## Strand Theft Auto Just days after Waymo was [cleared]() to officially launch robotaxi services in the city, a man [was arrested]() after attempting — and immediately failing — to steal one of its self-driving cars in downtown Los Angeles. In a [statement](), the LAPD said that Vincent Maurice Jones, 34, climbed into the white vehicle just after it had dropped off a passenger. Unfortunately, that's pretty much as far as he got. "Jones attempted to put the vehicle in 'Drive' but could not manipulate the controls," the LAPD said. ## Get Out After noticing the intruder, a Waymo representative told Jones to get out via the car's online communications system, according to the report. After he refused to do so, the LAPD showed up and arrested him on the spot. Autonomous vehicles have long been the subject of vandalism. Just last month, a Waymo robotaxi in San Francisco's Chinatown was graffitied and [eventually set on fire](). Waymo, an Alphabet subsidiary, has been testing its fully autonomous vehicles on the streets of LA for more than a year. Despite objections, Waymo [was given]() the green light last week to officially expand its autonomous vehicle services into Los Angeles County. The move sparked protests from local leaders. "These robotaxis are far too untested and Angelenos shouldn’t be Big Tech’s guinea pigs," said LA County supervisor Janice Hahn in a [statement](). "Decisions like this one should be informed by cities, not made over city objections." The company already operates robotaxi services in San Francisco and Phoenix. Waymo's main competitor, General Motors' Cruise, has hit [major roadblocks]() in rolling out its robotaxi services. The company has greatly scaled back its efforts following a [fateful incident in October]() when a woman became trapped under one of its vehicles. Critics have long fought to keep autonomous vehicles out of cities, with the city of San Francisco [filing a lawsuit]() in January to fight the state commission's decision to allow both Waymo and Cruise to run expanded driverless taxi services in the city. In other words, Jones likely won't be the last to attempt to steal an autonomous vehicle — even if such an attempt is clearly a fool's errand. **More on Waymo:** *[San Francisco Sues to Get Nuisance Self-Driving Cars Off Its Streets]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()