. >> sheriff doug gillespie is the man in charge. >> if you continue to go after them the same way that you always have, what you're going to get the same results. >> one of the biggest problems? car theft. >> auto theft is a prime example. we were going after auto theft from traditional ways. and then we brought in some nontraditional ways. >> enter members of a special auto theft unit called the viper squad. lieutenant bobby duvall who runs the unit has a warning for car thieves. >> las vegas is not the place to come and steal cars. it really isn't. >> his detectives use bait cars that are strategically placed to present an opportunity for potential thieves. all rigged with hidden cameras. >> we've got state-of-the-art bait car program. we have one of the largest fleets in the united states. and we have guys that know how to work them. >> tonight the bait car is a 2006 escalade. the cops fake a fight between a man and a woman. where did they get the idea? >> it is based on actual cases where people have had their cars stolen. >> in the commotion, they pretend to abandon the bait car s

. >> sheriff doug gillespie encourages his force of more than 3,000 officers to be creative. >> policing cannot be reactive when people call you for help. you to have proactive, come up with different ideas, some old, some new. don't accept just being good. >> so the vegas police find opportunities to catch thieves in the act. >> lately here car theft has been jumping. >> as you may remember from our last report, we're once again riding along with lieutenant bobby duvall who runs the viper squad a specialized unit formed to combat auto theft. hundreds of cars are stolen even month in las vegas, costing victims millions of dollars. just three years ago, vegas led the country in auto theft. with aggressive policing, numbers have been dropping. his team uses specially designs bait cars rigged with hidden cameras. they leave the vehicles in high-crime areas and wait for them to be stolen. watch how it works. >> hey, you're following me! >> it begins with undercover cops faking a fight. >> not taking care of business. what about our kids? they appear to abandon the car in chaos. >> people hav

. >> stories like hers are not lost on sheriff doug gillespie. >> do you ever feel sorry for a personyou do. it doesn't make what they've done right, by any stretch. >> he says there are programs designed to help people like sheryl. >> in law enforcement. we don't look at it from the enforcement standpoint. we're looking from a prevention and education standpoint as well. if you do become addicted, here are services that are available to you. you know, you have programs in place to give them opportunities to change their way of life. are there enough of those services? no. do we have to continue to work in that direction as well? yes. and i believe law enforcement is more engaged today than they ever have been. and those other aspects that impact what we do day to day. >> when people see this investigation, and the unprecedented access, what do you think the take-away should be? >> i think just reinforces to the public that we're just not out there driving around. that we are being proactive, we are being creative. and we are doing our level best to keep this community safe. >> and wi

according to las vegas police sheriff doug gillespie, the sting operation is a huge success.gation and the unprecedented access, what do you think the takeaway should be? >> well, i'd like -- i think just reinforces to the public that we're just not out there driving around, that we are being proactive. we are being creative. and we are doing our level best to keep this community safe. >> what impact do you think that storefront investigation will have? >> well, what will happen is we'll have to be a little bit better the next time because they'll walk through the door and some of them will be asking a few more questions. maybe it won't be a storefront. maybe it will be some other type of operation that we do. but make no mistake, we'll be doing it. >> as for jr, he may not have admitted to me that he stole the vehicles. in court, though, he tells a different story. jr pleads guilty to grand larceny. his sentence as a habitual criminal and given ten years to life behind bars. in watching the raw video of our investigations following the las vegas police department, two things