Police: Catalytic converter thefts up locally, nationally; thieves seeking metals as prices skyrocket

Feb. 26—Just days after paying $5,000 for a Honda CR-V, Zeke Wilt was looking forward to taking his newly inspected vehicle home last month.

But when the West End native fired up his car last month outside a Johnstown auto shop, it responded with a lawnmower-like roar.

"Everything was basically shaking," he said. "It scared the hell out of me."

As it turned out, the auto shop's cameras captured grainy images of two people underneath the car the night before. Within four minutes, they caused $1,600 in damage, hacking off his car's catalytic converter, an emissions-reducing device often located in the middle of the exhaust system.

"They cut through two wire sensors ... and the pipes were just left hanging there," said Wilt, now of Pittsburgh. "I was furious."

And he is far from alone. Reports of catalytic converter thefts have been piling up across the country in recent months, fueled by the skyrocketing prices of the precious metals many contain.

In Richland Township, parts thieves used power tools to cut through a Ford pickup's exhaust system within minutes on Solomon Run Road and slip away before police arrived, said Chief Michael Burgan, of Richland Township police. It's not a new scheme, he added.

"When the scrap value for the metals goes up, so do the incidents," Burgan said.

And right now, some prices are way up. One of the metals, rhodium, has a greater per-ounce value than gold, making some vehicle's converters worth a few hundred bucks in resale.

State police in Somerset have received 30 reports of catalytic converters thefts this month, all of them in the Seven Springs area, said Trooper Stephen Limani, public information officer for Troop A. It's a frustrating crime, he added.

"They're causing a lot of damage to get maybe $100, and it's not easy to catch them," Limani said.

Wilt was lucky. The garage covered the repair bill because his car was on its lot when it happened.

"If it happened somewhere else, it would've been out almost $2,000 — on a $5,000 car," he said.

It's not just a local problem. Law enforcement agencies across the nation are seeing a surge in catalytic converter thefts.

In Tampa, Florida, police shut down an unlicensed recycling business near Ybor City that had collected more than $500,000 in parts, leading to a list of felony charges against the business's two operators.

In Alabama, a warrant was issued for a Mobile County man accused of swiping 10 of the emissions-reducing devices from a school bus fleet over the span of a week.

And in Minnesota, a 33-year-old man wearing a clown mask was arrested using a cordless saw while trying to remove catalytic converters from cars in a dealership's parking lot. The issue has gotten so problematic in the Minneapolis area that law enforcement officials parked a "bait car" rigged with sensors and cameras, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reported last week. The ploy led to several arrests.

SUVs, trucks and certain foreign cars, such as Toyotas, Hondas and Nissans, are considered at higher risk, with thieves sometimes turning to online buyers to unload their goods, law enforcement officials have said.

Matt Becker, operations manager at Johnstown Scrap Metal, said he suspects people likely have to look outside the area to bigger cities and beyond to find someone willing to buy a used converter right now. His shop doesn't buy them — and when it comes to specialized parts like those, the average person off the street probably isn't legally able to sell them, he added.

"Every once in a while we'll get someone calling us out of nowhere, asking if we buy them, but the answer they get is 'No' ... and you can see why that's probably a good thing we don't," Becker said.

Johnstown Scrap Metal requires photo identification before buying any metal, he added, a step aimed at deterring thieves from bringing their business to its doorstep.

"But we're hearing more (chatter) about catalytic converters," he said. "It seemed like it was a big problem in Maryland for awhile. ... Now it's here."

Limani said he's hopeful local community members can play a big role in changing that trend. A set of eyes across the street or an attentive passer-by might be able to witness something that could lead police to a thief, whether it's a license plate of a vehicle spotted fleeing the scene or a cell phone picture of someone suspicious crawling out from under a car, Limani added.

A good surveillance system can also capture vital clues, he said.

"If you see something, say something," Limani said. "If there's unusual activity going on — someone crawling under a car with a cutting device — let us know. And if someone has a bunch of catalytic converters, that's not normal."

A tip about a vehicle at a scene or a few descriptive details can make a difference, he added.

"That's why we're asking for help," Limani said.