Phoenix cops find 1,200 catalytic converters as thefts soar

PHOENIX -- An Arizona man was going through a number of theft fees Friday after detectives discovered more than 1,200 catalytic converters packed right into a storage unit, a case that highlights a national surge in thefts of the pricy auto elements that play a vital function in lowering vehicle 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 close to Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

“We were very shocked on the quantity 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 shopping for and selling the convertors was charged with 40 counts of theft and may face further costs.

The huge rise in catalytic converters thefts throughout the nation has hit tens of hundreds of automobile and truck homeowners in the pocketbook and pissed off police, who're confronted with a criminal offense that takes simply minutes to commit and is troublesome to solve even when they find the stolen parts.

Catalytic converters should not imprinted on the factory with serial numbers and stolen converters find yourself on a black market the place they are chopped open for the valuable metals they comprise.

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

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

Lawmakers throughout the nation have taken notice, introducing laws designed to make it more durable for criminals to unload their loot. Based on the Nationwide Insurance coverage Crime Bureau, 150 payments have been introduced this 12 months in 36 states and enacted in 16 states.

That features Arizona, where Republican Gov. Doug Ducey signed a bill this month that makes possession of a catalytic converter in many instances a criminal offense and adds detailed reporting requirements for scrap dealers that buy legitimate used devices. They must mark the item with the donor vehicle's serial quantity and retain it for not less than every week in original condition.

Scrap sellers caught with unregistered or stolen converters face a $500 advantageous for the primary offense, a $2,000 advantageous for a second and no less than double that for each further time they are caught. These possessing or attempting to promote a used catalytic converter that don't meet new necessities might face a six-month jail sentence.

Federal laws can be in the works. Indiana Rep. Jim Baird is sponsoring a invoice backed by the Nationwide Insurance Crime Bureau that may require serial numbers on new units, supply grants for programs to stamp numbers on current cars and vehicles and make it simpler to prosecute thefts.

The insurance coverage group's President and CEO David Glawe called it a important step in serving to deliver reduction to people instantly impacted by the thefts.

Insurance typically doesn't cowl a automobile owner's losses. Somebody carrying simply liability coverage or liability and collision is on the hook for the complete invoice. Even with comprehensive coverage, there is a deductible that could be excessive enough that it is not worth submitting a declare.

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