News

Jul 14, 2023

‘Taking my freedom’: Victims of catalytic converter theft speak out

Andrew Betancourt woke up on Christmas morning eager to open up presents with

Andrew Betancourt woke up on Christmas morning eager to open up presents with his son. He jumped in his 2011 Toyota Prius and started the engine.

Immediately, he knew something was off.

"It was a sound I had never heard before. I couldn't even go pick my son up because my car sounded like a lawnmower –– like a loud motorcycle," Betancourt, of Chatsworth, said.

Catalytic converter theft rates have exploded in recent years, a pesky crime that takes minutes to pull off and not infrequently months to fix.

Reported thefts rose from 1,300 in 2018 to more than 52,000 in 2021 — a 1,215% increase, the National Insurance Crime Bureau said. California, the car capital of the nation, is a particular hot spot, officials said.

The brazen crime can often come at a high cost for vehicle owners. Many miss work, face transportation headaches and pay thousands out of pocket in expenses.

In a blink of an eye, Betancourt, a delivery truck driver by trade, was out of a working vehicle. A working vehicle meant he could have a side hustle, driving for rideshare apps such as Uber Eats. Those apps meant extra money.

Gone.

"I was just really mad because I worked so hard to have the little things that I have, and just for someone to come steal it was a hit below the belt," Betancourt said.

"I have to walk to work. I’m a single father, so having to meet up with my ex-wife to go see my kid –– that's hard, too."

To fix that 2011 Prius, a car now 12 years old, will cost Betancourt $3,500. That's out of his pocket.

Due to a nationwide backlog, he won't receive a replacement for up

to 10 more months.

John Bitterolf, of Santa Monica, owner of University Tire and Auto Service in downtown LA, said his shop is replacing up to 15 catalytic converters a month.

"They’re stealing them by using a reciprocating saw," a handheld tool commonly used for demolition or remodeling, "and it can be done very, very quickly, in a matter of a minute or two," Bitterolf said.

A Palmdale woman on Tuesday ran over and killed a catalytic converter suspect who crawled under her SUV. She woke up from a nap to the sound of a saw, reversed her car and "felt a bump," the LA Times said.

"This catalytic converter theft is really a crisis at this point. The supply can't keep up with the demand, and there's just not enough catalytic converters to replace the ones that have been stolen," Bitterold said.

A catalytic converter is an essential device to a vehicle's exhaust system, converting toxic exhaust into more environmentally friendly gasses. Individual states set their own emission standards for catalytic converters.

Catalytic converter theft has hit California particularly hard.

In an indictment filed last October in Sacramento, federal prosecutors asserted, "last year approximately 1,600 catalytic converters were reportedly stolen in California each month, and California accounts for 37% of all catalytic converter theft claims nationwide.

"With California's higher emission standards, our community has become a hotbed for catalytic converter theft."

In Irvine, 2022 thefts spiked to 526 from 15 in 2018 –– a more than 3,000% increase, police said.

"We’re arresting people from all over Southern California with different backgrounds," Kyle Oldoerp, an Irvine Police Department spokesman said. "What makes this a unique crime is that not all catalytic converters are the same. Certain models are favored by thieves based on the amount of that precious metal that is in each catalytic converter."

Rhodium, palladium and platinum, metals found in converter parts, can go for $20,000 per ounce, the national crime bureau said.

Moreover, catalytic converters lack unique serial numbers and VIN identification numbers, making it difficult to locate lawful owners and leaving many thefts unsolved.

LAPD encourages parking in well-lit spaces, or in garages and, if possible, the engraving of a car's VIN on its catalytic converter.

Reports of rising theft bring back "horrifying" memories going back a

decade for Miryam Hernandez, 42, of Lake Forest.

One hot summer afternoon, Hernandez, along with her 7-year-old daughter, hopped in their 2004 Toyota Tacoma for a day trip to Venice Beach.

"I was shaking as soon as I heard the noise. I thought it was a bomb or it was going to explode," Hernandez said.

Hernandez drove around the corner to an auto shop where mechanics broke the news.

"I never thought it would happen to me because we were in a safe community," Hernandez said. "It was our only vehicle, so we were just stuck."

Thieves target specific vehicles with easy access to the converter. The Toyota Prius and Tacoma are among the two most likely vehicles for catalytic converter theft, according to Carfax.

Working as a paralegal with heavy student loan debt, Hernandez said the theft proved a financial stress. Nobody was arrested.

"It was more than taking that catalytic converter," Hernandez said. "Taking that catalytic converter was taking my freedom. Taking that little bit of joy that I had away from me and from my daughter."