Thieves target campus parking lots

Catalytic converters were recently stolen from four vehicles in campus parking lots, said campus security supervisor Tony Giannone.

All four converters were removed from Toyota trucks, including two from 4-Runners and two from Tacomas, which are often factory-raised higher than other trucks.

The thefts occurred during October and November in parking lots S1 next to the Haugh Performing Arts Center, S4 next to the softball complex, S6 on the south side of the football stadium, and another lot near the baseball field.

The owners of the targeted vehicles included three students and one employee.
Carlos Salazar, 29, a student in the audio recording technology program, was one of the  victims.

Salazar said that on Nov. 17, he parked his '04 Toyota Tacoma in the Performing Arts parking lot at 11:20 a.m. before his 11:30 class. Upon returning to the parking lot at 12:35 p.m., he discovered the converter had been stolen from his truck.

It cost him $248 and 20 minutes to replace.

“Just as fast as it took to take it off, it took that fast to replace it, but at a costly price,” Salazar said.

Salazar expressed concern about the ability of campus security to cover all of the issues that occur on campus.

“I wouldn’t want to park here,” Salazar said. “At the beginning of the semester I was parking away just so I wouldn’t have to pay for a parking permit and riding my bike in. But I have classes that require instruments. I can’t carry them on my road bike. So I bought the parking permit, and it made me wonder what I’m paying for,” he said.

Catalytic converters are common parts to be stolen from cars. They are a required part of the exhaust system, which reduces emissions, and are needed in order to pass a smog check. This, combined with their high price and easy access, makes them prime targets for thieves.

Automotive technology professor Dave Brown said the converters contain platinum, a precious metal that could make them desirable. They also include other metals: palladium, cerium, and rhodium. The metals make up the active part of the converter.

Brown said that it is illegal to re-sell catalytic converters as a part, but they could be taken to a recycling plant and sold for a low price.

“It seems like a lot of energy to put into something that’s not worth a whole lot,” he said.

Converters could also potentially be reused if the thief has the same car as the one the converter was stolen from. Often times, however, the converters are sawed off and would need to be re-welded in order to be re-used.

Converters on Toyotas unbolt, which makes them easier to steal.

“They can probably do it without making us much noise because they don’t have to get their saw out,” Brown said. “That would be the only thing I could think of that would attract them, in particular, to Toyotas.”

Giannone said catching the perpetrators of the thefts is a difficult task.

“The problem we have on campus, like any campus, is that we all look alike, student-body-wise. And so they come here, and they look like regular students," Giannone said.

“If you’re a criminal, you’re going to look and see what the class schedules are, and the peak hours, if you’re so inclined. And when you have a lot of people coming in and out of the parking lot, that’s when they’re going to hit you because they blend in,” he said.

Giannone said the security team and the Owl Patrol will be more vigilant in their patrolling and will be watching for suspicious-looking people checking out vehicles.

“If anybody is walking through and they see something abnormal, give us a call so we can go out there and check it out,” he said.

The security office is located inside the Handy Campus Center and can be reached at (626) 914-8611.