Baxter County Sheriff John Montgomery has issued a warning about the theft of catalytic converters after the arrest of a Gassville parolee on theft charges Thursday in northern Baxter County.Thirty-three-year-old William Joshua Lewis was arrested at an address on County Road 1087 in connection with one of multiple thefts of catalytic converters reported across the county.Montgomery says two catalytic converter thefts were reported in January, four more in March and one thus far in April. Each of the vehicles were parked, and the thefts have occurred in rural Mountain Home, Midway, Gassville and Buford. The sheriff also says similar thefts have been occurring in neighboring counties.
Most of the vehicles were trucks or vans, located at both businesses and residences. The sheriff says trucks and vans are easier to crawl underneath to access the converters, than passenger cars are. Thieves are able to quickly crawl under, cut off and remove the converter from a truck or van before fleeing.
Lewis was developed as a suspect in one of the thefts, and a bench warrant was issued for him. Thursday, officers from the Arkansas Department of Community Corrections located Lewis and took him into custody. He has been charged with theft of property, criminal mischief and removal of a non-ferrous metal, along with a habitual offender enhancement. Montgomery says bond for Lewis is set at $40,000.
The sheriff informs the public that if a catalytic converter is stolen, drivers will know as soon as they start their vehicles. Montgomery says the vehicles will sound as if they don’t have a muffler, but it is okay to drive to a muffler shop or dealer to have the catalytic converter replaced. There is no need to have the vehicle towed.
Catalytic converters are expensive to replace, costing from several hundred to several thousand dollars, the sheriff says. Catalytic converters are attractive to thieves because they contain platinum, palladium and rhodium, and they can fetch up to $240 per converter at scrap metal yards, providing a valuable incentive for thieves.
The sheriff’s office has alerted local scrap and salvage yards of these thefts and is also monitoring digital transaction logs the yards are required to maintain.
Montgomery offers the following steps to help prevent catalytic converter thefts
– Always park your vehicles inside a garage or a secured side yard if possible
– If you must park in the driveway, motion detector lights or continuous lights illuminating your driveway may be a deterrent
– A vehicle motion detector alarm might help
– Get together with neighbors to help monitor each other’s property and immediately report any suspicious activity to law enforcement
– Consider having extra metal welded to your exhaust system. Some muffler shops may provide this service in order to make it more difficult for a thief to remove the converter
– Catalytic converter protection devices are available on the market that will clamp on or go around your converter to help protect it from being stolen
– Consider having your vehicle identification number or some other identifying number engraved on the catalytic converter. This may help alert a scrap dealer that it was stolen and make it easier to identify owners.
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