Study: Fort Lauderdale Tops US Phone-Theft Rates

A study of 2025 FBI crime data ranks Fort Lauderdale first in the nation for thefts of cellphones and other handheld devices, at 480.1 incidents per 100,000 residents—more than three and a half times the national average. Baltimore ranked second by rate, at 471.2 per 100,000, but had the most incidents among the top 10 cities, with 2,652; six of the 10 highest-rate cities were in the South. The figures include thefts of tablets and other handheld electronics, as well as phones, and cover several types of crime, so they do not represent cellphone thefts alone.