[vangndy]

Ther are ways around locking gas caps, see below. Also heard of thieves cutting the hose at the fuel pump or tank which seems a little safer than drilling a hole in the tank....

By Tony Bizjak -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PDT Thursday, May 11, 2006
Story appeared in Metro section, Page B1

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Sacramento's Tahoe Park area got hit by a late-night oil drilling expedition this week, as thieves made off with gas from several residents' trucks by drilling holes in the tanks.
Wednesday morning, when resident Anthony Vera tried to start his pickup, the fuel gauge showed empty and the pavement under the truck smelled of gas. He discovered a neatly drilled round hole near the bottom of the truck's plastic tank.


Checking the neighborhood, he found two more trucks of the same model with empty tanks and similar holes. Two of the pickups were parked in the neighborhood northwest of Broadway and 65th Avenue, and another farther south on 21st Avenue.
"I thought, Oh, they got him, and him too," Vera said. "The tanks on these trucks are pretty easy to get to."

The irony, he said, is that the trucks have an anti-siphoning device so that thieves can't push a hose into the tank from the filling tube. He said he heard a new gas tank will cost him $500.

"Crazy," Vera said. "It would have cost me less if they had just been able to siphon it."

Sacramento Police spokesman Sgt. Terrell Marshall said he hadn't heard about the gas thefts Wednesday evening, and said police had not noticed any rash of gas thefts in the city.

While the petroleum pilfering may have been well-planned, some say it could have been more dangerous than smart. Risking an explosion or fire-causing spark by drilling into a gas tank "seems to me it would be a dangerous thing to do," said Lt. Marc Adams, El Dorado County Sheriff's spokesman, when told of the incidents.

Officials with several other law enforcement agencies told The Bee they have not been getting increased reports of gas theft, either.

That's despite record high gas prices. Regular unleaded gasoline was going for an average of $3.26 a gallon in Sacramento on Wednesday, according to the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report.

At those prices, however, "it wouldn't surprise me if it does happen more now," Adams said.

Officials in El Dorado County did nab an 18-year-old from Cameron Park and a juvenile last weekend after the pair allegedly broke into a storage yard in what appeared to be an attempt to siphon gas from vehicles.

One reason there may be fewer reported siphoning crimes is that gas tank systems on some newer cars block siphoning hoses, a local automobile sales official said.

With Ford vehicles, for instance, "most later model vehicles have baffles in the fuel filter pipe so it is virtually impossible to fit a hose down," said Trent Heth of Elk Grove Ford.

Similarly, employees at three local gas stations report they are not being hit by pump-and-run thefts for a simple reason: Virtually all stations now employ pay-first systems.

Rosemary Dysinger, a Shell station employee in Elk Grove, said a few people try scams, such as asking for their money back claiming someone else got the gas or that they couldn't get the pump to work.

But with pumps controlled and monitored in the office by employees, those scams are unlikely to work. "You have to be really strict now," she said.

Although there have been few reports of gas theft, Sacramento County Sheriff's spokesman Sgt R.L. Davis said it is wise for vehicle owners to take some precautionary steps.

"It comes down to protecting your vehicle," he said. "Put it in a place that is well lit. Make sure your car alarm is sensitive enough so that any movement will activate that alarm. Locking-gas caps are another tool in protecting your vehicle."

Vera, whose truck does have an alarm system, said he will buy a new tank and park his truck in the driveway, where he has a gate.

"They could be back," he said.