General Hospital soap star Johnny Wactor shot dead in catalytic converter robbery

If someone tries to steal one from my Tesla, I'll die laughing. As for my BMW i3-REx, the converter is too small, nearly impossible to access so it would easier to steal the whole car:


Bob Wilson

 

If the perpetrators of this crime are caught, what is the penalty.

 

Death penalty in California is possible. Meth heads will do anything anywhere anytime to get money.

A friend was staying at her son’s house here in Central Texas with her Prius parked on the street. Her son’s police car was parked next to it. They had the cat in 3 minutes, caught on video. But the video quality was poor (normally all video is worthless) and the perps had carmax paper plates on their generic Ford truck.

Many cats were stolen that night and no one was caught. 15 miles up the freeway there is a giant “recycler” who buys cats. With a big Catalytic Converter sign on front.

 

They are lucky they are in California - I would advise these low life thieves not to venture too far south if they value their lives.

What sort of people commit a crime like this to others property and even murder for scraps of metal?

Laws that help eliminate this behavior
Kentucky Senate passes bill to penalize catalytic converter thieves | News from WDRB | wdrb.com

Texas Penal Code Section 31.21 – Unauthorized Possession of Catalytic Converter (public.law)

Purchase of Catalytic Converters | Department of Public Safety (texas.gov)


It is considered open season year around on Catalytic Converter thieves and the like in parts of the south.

Tenn.

In many cases these people are part of organized crime rings and very dangerous. They are depraved and value money over peoples lives - I would not confront any of them without a handgun and adequate cover.

 

Laws make no difference here.

 

nothing good happens after midnight

 

Yes as long as other states don't address the problem it will be an issue for everyone

Why Are People Stealing Catalytic Converters in Texas? – NBC 5 Dallas-Fort Worth (nbcdfw.com)

"The Texas legislature cracked down on catalytic converter thefts last session by passing tough new penalties and requiring sellers to produce proof of ownership and even fingerprints.
But now, police say, the thieves have found a way around the new law: They’re stealing the devices in Texas, accumulating them, and selling them in other states with weaker laws."

 

They also sell to middle men who have a salvage or shop license who then take them to the convenient local catalytic converter recycler. The middle men have enabled chop shops for decades.

 

In Texas prosecute them

1.Obtain search warrant if suspects are in Texas
2.Execute warrant with probable cause
3.Search and Demand records for all Cat Converters.
4. Prosecute and hand out Jail sentences letting criminal know immediately Texas is closed for business.

Quotes from Texas Laws

• "(a)A person commits an offense if the person:

(1)intentionally or knowingly possesses a catalytic converter that has been removed from a motor vehicle; and
(2)is not a person who is authorized under Subsection (b) to possess the catalytic converter."

"(c)
The presumption established under Subsection (b) does not apply to a person described by Subsection (b)(2) who knows that the catalytic converter was unlawfully removed from a motor vehicle or otherwise unlawfully obtained."

"Prohibited Purchases

A metal recycling entity may not purchase a catalytic converter from a seller who fails to provide this information or if the catalytic converter does not match the manufacturer's specifications for the identified vehicle.

Marking of Catalytic Converter

A metal recycling entity must mark each catalytic converter purchased by the entity with a unique number. Proposed Rule §36.38 provides as follows:

A metal recycling entity shall mark each catalytic converter purchased by the entity with the unique number that identifies the entity, the date, and the individual transaction, in the form and manner determined by the department. The number may consist of a combination of numbers and letters, and must be legibly and permanently marked with an industrial paint pen or marker in numbers at least one inch high.

Catalytic Converter Unique Identifier

The Catalytic Converter Identifier (CCID) will consist of:

• 
  
  
  • 3-character identifier specific to each MRE location, to be known as the MRE Location Identifier (MLID);
  • 2-Digit Month;
  • 4-Digit Year;
  • 4-Digit unique sequential identifier for each catalytic converter.

The TOM system will generate and assign an MLID to each Metal Recycling Entity. MREs will be able to access their unique Location Identifier from within the TOM online application."


MREs will enter the month and year, and will create the unique sequential identifier for the catalytic converter. This can be a simple 0001, 0002, for example, that can be reset at the first of each month.

Record Requirements

A metal recycling entity must keep an accurate record of each catalytic converter purchase. The record must be in English and include:

• 
  
  
  • The information required by Section 1956.033, with the additional requirement of, a clear and legible thumbprint of the seller unless the seller presents to the metal recycling entity a valid cash transaction card issued under Section 1956.0382.
  • The above described vehicle information provided by the seller;
  • A copy of the vehicle documentation described above;
  • The unique identifier marked on the catalytic converter.

Other preexisting statutory requirements relating to preservation of records, inspection of records, reporting of transactions; and disposition, processing, sale or removal of the item, apply to purchases of catalytic converters."

A chop shop in Texas with a stash of Cat Converters is just asking for a felony conviction with hard jail time.

 

I feel sorry for the guy, but my Spidey senses are tingling about how many other people were shot and killed in LA over the weekend.
If you live in a non-permissive environment where firearms are concerned DO NOT confront three people engaged in property crime!!!!
One or more of them will nearly ALWAYS be armed.

BT-Dubbs.....
If you DO live on free soil, the same basic principle applies at 0200 when you're on the wrong side of 3-1 odds!

 

I thought the prices for the precious metals involved had dropped; maybe not enough?

 

i was wondering the same. not enough to make up the difference at mcdonalds i guess

 

Do a news search on converter thefts. You will still see lots of thefts and a fair number of shootings.

 

Yes, the price of Rhodium was the main driver. April 2021 Rhodium had increased to a peak around $29,000 per ounce. Today it has retreated to a much more normal $4800 per ounce.

 

The purchasing power of the USD $ isn't NEARLY what it used to be - ESPECIALLY lately, but people still get killed over them.

 

More mundane metals, similar sand-pounding destruction/expense:

‘They had power tools’: B.C. man warns of metal thieves targeting EV charging cables | Globalnews.ca

 

Tesla has mobile repair teams and within the next day, repair the cable. CCS-1 maintenance is slower … too many different cables and cabinets.

Bob Wilson

 

They need to start going after the people who buy stolen catalytic converters. Every now and then I'm sure there's an occasional one that comes in. I'm sure that legitimate automobile salvage operations regularly bring them in. But I'm also sure it's obvious when a sketchy-looking guy comes in week after week with a handful of catalytic converters (or the contents) looking to sell for cash.

 

There was a bust of a major ring last year.