Phoenix cops find 1,200 catalytic converters as thefts soar

PHOENIX -- An Arizona man was facing multiple theft prices Friday after detectives found greater than 1,200 catalytic converters packed right into a storage unit, a case that highlights a national surge in thefts of the expensive auto elements that play a vital position in decreasing automobile emissions.

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

“We were very surprised on the quantity in there,” Phoenix police Det. Adam Popelier said in a police video taken Thursday as officers had been pulling converters from the jam-packed storage locker.

The 48-year-old man who police say was shopping for and promoting the convertors was charged with 40 counts of theft and may face additional prices.

The huge rise in catalytic converters thefts throughout the nation has hit tens of thousands of car and truck owners within the pocketbook and annoyed police, who are confronted with a criminal offense that takes simply minutes to commit and is troublesome to solve even when they find the stolen components.

Catalytic converters should not imprinted on the manufacturing facility with serial numbers and stolen converters end up on a black market where they're chopped open for the dear metals they comprise.

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

The insurance coverage group counted just 3,969 stories of stolen catalytic converters in 2019, more than 17,000 in 2020 and greater than 52,000 final yr.

Lawmakers throughout the nation have taken discover, introducing legislation designed to make it tougher for criminals to unload their loot. In response to the Nationwide Insurance Crime Bureau, 150 bills have been launched this 12 months in 36 states and enacted in 16 states.

That features Arizona, the place Republican Gov. Doug Ducey signed a invoice this month that makes possession of a catalytic converter in lots of situations against the law and provides detailed reporting necessities for scrap sellers that purchase reputable used devices. They must mark the merchandise with the donor vehicle's serial number and retain it for not less than every week in authentic situation.

Scrap dealers caught with unregistered or stolen converters face a $500 effective for the first offense, a $2,000 high-quality for a second and not less than double that for each additional time they're caught. Those possessing or attempting to promote a used catalytic converter that don't meet new necessities might face a six-month jail sentence.

Federal legislation can also be within the works. Indiana Rep. Jim Baird is sponsoring a bill backed by the National Insurance coverage Crime Bureau that may require serial numbers on new gadgets, supply grants for applications to stamp numbers on current vehicles and vehicles and make it easier to prosecute thefts.

The insurance group's President and CEO David Glawe called it a essential step in serving to convey aid to people straight impacted by the thefts.

Insurance coverage often does not cover a car proprietor's losses. Somebody carrying simply liability coverage or liability and collision is on the hook for the complete bill. Even with comprehensive protection, there is a deductible which may be high enough that it's not value filing a declare.

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