Increased effort — 04/14/08

April 11, 2008 04:27 pm

— The next time a thief is tempted to crawl beneath a Toyota truck parked on an Ashland street to steal its catalytic converter that thief should pause to ask: “Is this vehicle owned by someone who lives or works nearby, or is it a decoy parked here by Ashland police in an effort to catch a thief like me?”
Using vehicles as “bait” in hopes of catching a thief in the act of stealing a catalytic converter is just one of the things the Ashland Police Department is doing in an effort to thwart what has become something of a crime wave involving stolen catalytic converters. In our book, the use of the decoy vehicles may be the most effective way of discouraging the thefts because the thieves will never know whether they are stealing from a private citizen or walking into a trap set up by police.
Just two years ago, the theft of catalytic converters — the pollution control devices that have been a standard part of vehicle exhaust systems for more than three decades — was unheard of. Now such thefts are common, not only in northeast Kentucky but throughout the United States.
The reason? The metals in the converters can be quickly converted into cash on the scrap metal market. At one point, a number of converters were stolen in a single night from vehicles parked at an Ashland dealership.
Toyota trucks are a prime target for the thieves, mainly because they are easy to crawl under and the catalytic converters are bolted into place instead of welded. However, APD Capt. Don Petrella said a thief with a battery-powered reciprocating saw can remove a catalytic converter welded to a vehicle in a matter of seconds. Thus, no vehicle is really safe.
In addition to placing the decoy vehicles at various location, the Ashland Police Department also is offering cash rewards for anyone supplying information that leads to the arrest and conviction of someone for stealing converters. Police are asking residents to report any suspicious activity, such as an unfamiliar person working beneath a vehicle or unknown people canvassing residential areas.
People can call the APD’s Criminal Investigations Section at (606) 327-2072 or the Silent Witness hotline at (606) 329-1771. They also can send a Silent Witness e-mail through the APD’S Web site at www.Ashlandkypd.com. Callers can remain anonymous.
It is a safe bet that most vehicle owners never think about their catalytic converter until it is missing. But replacing a converter can cost owners more than $1,000, making the theft of a converter no small matter.
Our hope is that the APD’s stepped up efforts will lead to the arrest of at least some of those responsible for stealing the catalytic converters — or that the use of decoy vehicles will cause thieves to decide stealing in Ashland is too risky and choose another area in which to commit their crimes.