Now car parts aren't safe from thieves - WALB.com, Albany News, Weather, Sports

Now car parts aren't safe from thieves

Posted: Updated:

  • More WALB News10 HeadlinesMore News Headlines

  • Wednesday, May 22 2013 8:20 PM EDT2013-05-23 00:20:52 GMT
    The Lee County Sheriff's Department is now working with the Albany Crime stoppers. The Lee County Sheriff's Department asked to join the Albany Crime-stoppers program. The Sheriff's Department believes
    The Lee County Sheriff's Department is now working with the Albany Crime stoppers. The Lee County Sheriff's Department asked to join the Albany Crime-stoppers program. The Sheriff's Department believes it will be a helpful tool in closing some cases.

     

  • Disaster plans for your pet

    Wednesday, May 22 2013 8:08 PM EDT2013-05-23 00:08:36 GMT
    How would you save your pets life if a tornado touched down here in South Georgia? Tuesday's tornado ripped through Oklahoma taking 24 lives, and today families are still searching for their belongings
    How would you save your pets life if a tornado touched down here in South Georgia? Tuesday's tornado ripped through Oklahoma taking 24 lives, and today families are still searching for their belongings and pets that were lost during the storm

  • Wednesday, May 22 2013 6:43 PM EDT2013-05-22 22:43:09 GMT
    Some princesses and super heroes made a stop in Albany Wednesday to visit young patients at Phoebe Putney Memorial hospital. Spiderman, Ariel and a few others made rounds to the children on the pediatric
    Some princesses and super heroes made a stop in Albany Wednesday to visit young patients at Phoebe Putney Memorial hospital.
    •   

May 22, 2008

Dougherty County - Copper and metal thefts continue to plague Dougherty County, as the price of salvage metal rises. Now a new target is starting to be stolen by metal thieves. Catalytic converters off vans and trucks. 

Those metal thieves have hurt disabled veterans in the community.

American Legion Post 30 veterans knew when they cranked their transport vans, someone had tampered with them Sunday night.

"It was loud as a Sherman tank. I crawled up underneath it, and the catalytic converter was gone," said Post Service Officer Nick Nicholson.

This is a catalytic converter, part of your vehicles exhaust system.

"It filters the impurities out of your exhaust that hurts the environment," said County Line Muffler Shop owner Jack Thomas.

And those convertors do that with a mixture of metals. "You got platinum, palladium, and rhodium in the converter," Thomas said.

And those metals are worth a lot of money to auto salvagers, and now thefts of converters are on the rise in Dougherty County. Police say vans like the American Legion's and big trucks are favorite targets for thieves, because they are easy to crawl underneath. They use a power saw to cut the pipes and are gone in seconds.

"Of course people wouldn't be stealing this stuff if somebody wasn't buying it. We're trying to make sure the recyclers are aware of this latest trend," said Dougherty County Police Captain Jimmy Sexton.

These American Legion vans that the metal thief hit are used to transport disabled veterans to hospitals and clinics.  "There is some pretty low life people," Nicholson said.

Thomas said it costs between $200 to $2,000 to replace catalytic converters, depending on the type stolen.

"It's a shame that the veterans that sacrificed so much for this country, and go over and get shot and wounded and everything. We try to help them out, and then people come in and steal," Nicholson said.

The American Legion says they will park their vans in locked garages, when they get them repaired, to protect them from metal thieves.

Police say people need to safeguard their vehicles. Park them in well lighted areas, and call police if they see suspicious people around church or business vans or trucks at odd times.

Feedback: news@walb.com?subject=CatalyticThefts-JW-5/22