I stole a car and drove it right into a lake, and I got away with it

This is from back in my reckless days. I was staying in this shitty house just for the summer, and i wasn’t aware at the time, but this house was literally on the wrong side of the tracks. The area was a slum. The very first thing that I noticed upon arrival was the amount of crime in the area. There was constantly sirens. Cars racing down our street every night, cops and ambulances blaring their horns. Everyone sold drugs, or they stole. One of the guys I was staying with worked at a car wash, and a rich guy tipped him a gun in addition to a monetary tip, just for giving him good customer service. I think he got a couple thousand on top of it too, just for being a good conversationalist. I was never in the car when he received the gun, but the rich guys treatment of the workers stuck with me. This neighborhood was filled with gang activity, and other unsavory behavior that I wasn’t used to. <br><br>One rainy night, as my friends and I were doing donuts in a vacant parking lot, some gang members tried to run us down, until we sped away before they could surround us, and i wasn’t sure why they were doing it, but it freaked me the fuck out. That was the turning point for me, where i realized we weren’t in Kansas anymore. I wasn’t used to people trying to kill me. Back in my town, we were all very friendly to each other for the most part, so that moment stuck with me. I realized that this neighborhood was not the same. <br><br>I found out from the girl across the street from us, i think she was always in 5th grade, that my house was recently the site of a murder. She found out i was new, and assumed that i didn’t know. She told me repeatedly that we shouldn’t be staying there. As a 20 year old man, i was staying in a neighborhood where a 10 year old thought it was not safe for me. Anyway. I already knew how to hot wire cars from watching a youtube video a few years prior, but now i had the opportunity to use it. One of my room mates was the boy we were staying with, who owned the house. The others were myself and two of our friends. For the first week we got by with a car that was given to us by a friend, but once that was totalled in an accident, we were car-less. Thats when i started stealing them. You would be surprised how easy it is. Especially in a slum. <br><br>This was my first time stealing a car, and things could not have gone smoother. A car pulled up and parked right in front of the house, and a woman got out and went inside. I saw her park, and i knew exactly what i was going to do. I grabbed some wires, and when she was inside i went over and stole her car. I drove it down the street until i was out of view, then i pulled over and waited to see if she would come looking for it. I could see the house from where i parked, and sure enough she came out looking around. She got into another car and drove down the street slowly, obviously looking for her car. I pulled forward and turned off my lights and ducked so she couldn’t see me, and she slowly drove past me without even seeing me. <br><br>After she went back inside, i went back to the house and got my room mates, and we went for a spin. We drove the car all around town, got food, smoked, and just enjoyed the car while we had it. I drove it back to where i had parked it, and then we walked back later that night to switch the license plates. It was fun as hell. <br><br>That night, we were out doing donuts and getting a little sloppy, and we almost got caught by the cops. We had to drive the car through the woods, and gun it right out of the woods and onto the street a block away. We had to gun it to get to the street before the cop turned the corner. I knew if he turned the corner and saw me peeling out, it would be over. I floored it and was able to get on the street just in time, and i slowed down to try to act like i wasn’t the person doing donuts. I drove past him slowly, and he looked me dead in the eye to see if i was the criminal, but he let me go. <br><br>After that night i decided things were getting too hot. I wanted to push my luck a little further, so i decided to drive the car into the lake, so i could get away with it. I knew if i left it parked somewhere, someone would inevitably find it, and if they found my fingerprints or anything, i would be busted. I didn’t want to just set it on fire, because a massive fire would draw a lot of attention, and fire investigators would definitely look for starters like lighter fluid. I decided the perfect thing to do would be to get it out of town, and drive it into lake Michigan, where it would never be seen again. <br><br>I drove the car three hours to a city on the lake. I parked and walked down to the shore and made sure there wasn’t anyone around. I saw a lot of people walking the shore, and i wasn’t sure what to do. I knew if i just drove it in, it would draw a lot of attention, and i didn’t want anyone to get the license plate number. I decided to park it, get some rest, and do it the next night. The next night, i parked back in the spot i parked the night before, and walked the shore again, but this time i walked all the way to a park further down, and i noticed a pier. I decided that would be perfect. If i could drive the car right out into the water and get it submerged as much as possible, it would be much harder to find. I thought i had to do it. <br><br>The next night, i parked the car back in the same spot, and walked the shore again as a last check. I didn’t see anyone, so i went back to the car, and put it in drive. I kept the lights off and sped across the grass towards the pier. I kept my eyes on the water, looking through the windshield to see when the water would appear, and i tried to keep my aim so i would land in the water right next to the pier. I floored it and the car picked up speed. Right before the water i jumped out of the car, and as i did, the car slowed just enough for the front of the car to turn left, away from the pier. I went probably 6 or 8 feet in the air, and landed with my palms in the water. It was fucking cold as shit. I was soaked from the waist up, and very happy to be alive. I walked back to the House i was staying in, and didn’t tell anyone about it for over a year.<br><br>Edit: Wow, this blew up. Thanks for all the kind words and awards, everyone. Unfortunately, the theft happened over 9 years ago, so there’s no way they’re still looking for me, but i appreciate the concern. I definitely don’t condone stealing, but if you find yourself in my situation, please do the same thing so that no one gets hurt. Also, car thieves, please stop stealing people’s cars. They need those cars to get to work, and they can’t pay their bills and feed their families without a ride.