Phoenix cops discover 1,200 catalytic converters as thefts soar

PHOENIX -- An Arizona man was dealing with multiple theft fees Friday after detectives found more than 1,200 catalytic converters packed into a storage unit, a case that highlights a national surge in thefts of the pricy auto components that play a crucial function in decreasing car emissions.

The invention followed a months-long investigation that began with a January tip that someone was storing stolen catalytic converters in an industrial area near Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

“We had been very surprised on the amount in there,” Phoenix police Det. Adam Popelier mentioned 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 further fees.

The massive rise in catalytic converters thefts throughout the nation has hit tens of 1000's of automobile and truck homeowners in the pocketbook and annoyed police, who are faced with a criminal offense that takes simply minutes to commit and is troublesome to unravel even if they find the stolen parts.

Catalytic converters usually are not imprinted at the manufacturing unit with serial numbers and stolen converters end up on a black market where they are chopped open for the valuable metals they contain.

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

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

Lawmakers across the nation have taken discover, introducing laws designed to make it more durable for criminals to unload their loot. Based on the National 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 bill this month that makes possession of a catalytic converter in lots of cases a crime and adds detailed reporting necessities for scrap sellers that purchase reputable used units. They have to mark the merchandise with the donor vehicle's serial number and retain it for no less than a week in authentic situation.

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

Federal laws is also within the works. Indiana Rep. Jim Baird is sponsoring a invoice backed by the National Insurance coverage Crime Bureau that will require serial numbers on new units, provide grants for packages to stamp numbers on current vehicles and trucks and make it simpler to prosecute thefts.

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

Insurance coverage usually doesn't cowl a automobile owner's losses. Somebody carrying simply legal responsibility protection or legal responsibility and collision is on the hook for the complete invoice. Even with comprehensive protection, there is a deductible which may be high sufficient that it's not value submitting a declare.

“Lastly, some victims even with coverage might treat the problem as a mechanical concern and just pay for it themselves and never notify their insurer,” insurance coverage crime bureau spokesperson Tully Lehman said Friday.