If you own a Toyota, keep it in your garage and not in your driveway or out of the street. You're a target waiting to get robbed if you don't.
By Art Campos - acampos@sacbee.com of the Sacramento Bee
Published 12:19 pm PST Monday, January 14, 2008
Toyota owners in Roseville have been hit hard by thieves who are removing catalytic converters from the vehicles, police say.
Since November, police have counted 44 incidents in which catalytic converters have been stolen, mostly from Toyota pickup trucks and Toyota 4-Runners.
Police spokeswoman Dee Dee Gunther said the thieves steal the converters for the metal.
"We've heard that metal recyclers pay about $80 for them," Gunther said.
Unfortunately for Toyota owners, it costs about $1,000 for parts and labor to have a catalytic converter replaced, she said.
Most of the vehicles targeted have been parked in driveways or on residential streets, Gunther said. The converters are easy to take off Toyotas, where they are located under the vehicles and can be removed without the thief being seen.
A catalytic converter is part of a vehicle's emission control system. Vehicle owners usually notice a theft when they start the engine and hear a loud, harsh noise, Gunther said.
Fourteen of the thefts occurred in Roseville in November, 23 in December and seven during the first two weeks of January, she said.
She urged Toyota truck and SUV owners to park their vehicles inside locked garages.
Anyone with information about the thefts is urged to call police at (916) 774-5070 or the Roseville Crime Stoppers, which offers rewards for anonymous tips leading to an arrest, at (916) 783-7867.
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