Phoenix cops find 1,200 catalytic converters as thefts soar

PHOENIX -- An Arizona man was going through multiple theft costs Friday after detectives discovered more than 1,200 catalytic converters packed into a storage unit, a case that highlights a national surge in thefts of the expensive auto components that play a crucial function in lowering vehicle emissions.

The invention adopted a months-long investigation that started with a January tip that somebody was storing stolen catalytic converters in an industrial space close to Phoenix Sky Harbor Worldwide Airport.

“We have been very stunned on the amount in there,” Phoenix police Det. Adam Popelier mentioned in a police video taken Thursday as officers were pulling converters from the jam-packed storage locker.

The 48-year-old man who police say was buying and selling the convertors was charged with 40 counts of theft and should face additional prices.

The large rise in catalytic converters thefts across the nation has hit tens of hundreds of automotive and truck homeowners in the pocketbook and frustrated police, who're confronted with a crime that takes simply minutes to commit and is difficult to solve even when they find the stolen components.

Catalytic converters usually are not imprinted on the factory with serial numbers and stolen converters end up on a black market the place they're chopped open for the dear metals they contain.

Changing one can value a motorist from $1,000 to $3,000, based on the Nationwide Insurance coverage Crime Bureau, an insurance business group that works to combat insurance fraud and crime. Police say thieves can get from $100 to $150 for every converter.

The insurance group counted simply 3,969 studies of stolen catalytic converters in 2019, more than 17,000 in 2020 and more than 52,000 last year.

Lawmakers across the nation have taken discover, introducing laws designed to make it tougher for criminals to unload their loot. Based on the National Insurance Crime Bureau, 150 payments have been introduced this yr in 36 states and enacted in 16 states.

That includes Arizona, the place Republican Gov. Doug Ducey signed a invoice this month that makes possession of a catalytic converter in many cases a crime and adds detailed reporting necessities for scrap sellers that buy respectable used units. They have to mark the item with the donor vehicle's serial quantity and retain it for not less than a week in authentic situation.

Scrap dealers caught with unregistered or stolen converters face a $500 wonderful for the primary offense, a $2,000 superb for a second and not less than double that for each extra time they're caught. These possessing or attempting to promote a used catalytic converter that do not meet new requirements may face a six-month jail sentence.

Federal laws is also in the works. Indiana Rep. Jim Baird is sponsoring a invoice backed by the Nationwide Insurance coverage Crime Bureau that might require serial numbers on new devices, provide grants for applications to stamp numbers on current automobiles and vans and make it simpler to prosecute thefts.

The insurance group's President and CEO David Glawe known as it a crucial step in serving to convey aid to individuals directly impacted by the thefts.

Insurance coverage often does not cover a car proprietor's losses. Somebody carrying simply legal responsibility protection or liability and collision is on the hook for the total bill. Even with complete protection, there's a deductible that could be excessive sufficient that it's not worth submitting a claim.

“Lastly, some victims even with coverage may deal with the problem as a mechanical concern and just pay for it themselves and by no means notify their insurer,” insurance crime bureau spokesperson Tully Lehman mentioned Friday.