Phoenix cops find 1,200 catalytic converters as thefts soar

PHOENIX -- An Arizona man was dealing with multiple theft charges Friday after detectives found greater than 1,200 catalytic converters packed right into a storage unit, a case that highlights a nationwide surge in thefts of the expensive auto parts that play a crucial role in lowering car emissions.

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

“We had been very shocked at 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 buying and selling the convertors was charged with 40 counts of theft and may face extra costs.

The large rise in catalytic converters thefts throughout the nation has hit tens of 1000's of car and truck house owners in the pocketbook and pissed off police, who're confronted with a crime that takes simply minutes to commit and is difficult to unravel even when they find the stolen elements.

Catalytic converters are not imprinted on the factory with serial numbers and stolen converters find yourself on a black market where they are chopped open for the precious metals they include.

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

The insurance group counted simply 3,969 reviews of stolen catalytic converters in 2019, more than 17,000 in 2020 and more than 52,000 last 12 months.

Lawmakers across the nation have taken notice, introducing laws designed to make it more durable for criminals to unload their loot. Based on the National Insurance coverage Crime Bureau, 150 payments have been launched this yr 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 instances a criminal offense and adds detailed reporting necessities for scrap sellers that buy respectable used units. They must mark the merchandise with the donor automobile's serial number and retain it for no less than a week in authentic situation.

Scrap sellers caught with unregistered or stolen converters face a $500 wonderful for the first offense, a $2,000 high-quality for a second and no less than double that for each extra time they are caught. These possessing or making an attempt to promote a used catalytic converter that don't meet new requirements could face a six-month jail sentence.

Federal legislation is also within the works. Indiana Rep. Jim Baird is sponsoring a bill backed by the Nationwide Insurance coverage Crime Bureau that would require serial numbers on new devices, provide grants for applications to stamp numbers on current cars and vans and make it easier to prosecute thefts.

The insurance group's President and CEO David Glawe referred to as it a critical step in helping carry aid to individuals immediately impacted by the thefts.

Insurance coverage typically doesn't cowl a automobile owner's losses. Somebody carrying simply liability coverage or legal responsibility and collision is on the hook for the total bill. Even with comprehensive protection, there's a deductible that may be high sufficient that it is not worth filing a declare.

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