Catalytic Converter Theft

[varmint]

Last housing crisis whole neighborhoods near Palmdale were abandoned.

Crews would come in and strip the landscaping.

A sororo cactus goes for a lot of money.

[stevej37]

I'd love to see someone come into my lawn and try to strip the landscaping! lol

[pmax]

Overkill.



Chain ain't gonna cut it.

I'll take the rebar.

[porsche930dude]

my neighbor had a sign in her garden "Free Weeds" and one day all her flowers were gone. She things someone took them. Probably deer. But we suspected the russian guy nextdoor that doesnt speak english and misinterpreted it. Alot of that goes on around here. College town lots of foreigners. Somebody stole a whole book nook "free library" and bench. things like that. I suspect it happens alot in california aswell for that reason.

[Jeff Hail]

I caught a guy red handed earlier this year in my driveway. I have him on 3 different security cameras.

The best cover was he worked for a public utility as a day job in a branded vehicle. Wearing a high viz safety vest and a balaclava for a mask just drove up, got out of his vehicle. Reached into the bed and grabbed a rechargeable handheld DeWalt rotary saw with a diamond blade and walked up to the vehicle. The last guy you would think would be casing vehicles to see whats underneath them in the exhaust parts department.

He was under the vehicle when confronted by armed home owner. He was not in a position to move anywhere and pissed his pants right on the spot. I'm sure he left some skid marks in his shorts also. My former neighbor also witnesses this and was across the street, armed as well.

The videos were shared with his employer before he even made it back to his office. His employer tried to mitigate until I pressed the fact he was on private property, under a vehicle at the converter with a cordless cutoff tool. Did they want the videos to appear on You Tube before the day was over or be provided to the 2 or 3 local news channels?

Local Sheriff won't come out because "an actual crime" did not take place.

The bad part is earlier in the year a ring was busted where 17 people were arrested and $750,000 worth of stolen converters were recovered in my area.

The Sheriffs office wins the award for ignorance and stupidity for ignoring this one. What better way to case converters then a guy who works the street for a public utility during the day when people are at work? Its a perfect crime. The guy did not really stand out. Considering just a couple of months before they made a major bust or did they?

The thefts continue.

[hcoles]

Yep, not guilty of any crime. Guilty of holding a Dewalt cutoff saw. However, the LEO could come and check inside his vehicle and see what's there.

[pmax]

Isn’t private property fair game unless there’s a clear boundary ?

[pksystems]

I dunno what they pay here, but a turbo Subaru I was watching on FB Marketplace seemed like a decent price for a project. It didn't sell for weeks. He cut the cat out, and dropped the price by 750$

I picked it up the next day. Aftermarket cat is like 70$ and some scrap pipe to fix, or I just go straight pipe/aftermarket exhaust.

[hcoles]

Originally Posted by porsche930dude

my neighbor had a sign in her garden "Free Weeds" and one day all her flowers were gone. She things someone took them. Probably deer. But we suspected the russian guy nextdoor that doesnt speak english and misinterpreted it. Alot of that goes on around here. College town lots of foreigners. Somebody stole a whole book nook "free library" and bench. things like that. I suspect it happens alot in california aswell for that reason.

Reminds me... If you can't tell which are weeds and which are plants.. hoe them all down and the ones that come back are weeds.

[red-beard]

Originally Posted by pmax

Chain ain't gonna cut it.

I'll take the rebar.

Rebar is soft. You need something that is hardened.

OTOH, if a thief sees any of that, they will go to an easier target.

[GH85Carrera]

Some real geniuses are trying to resell them.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by hcoles

Yep, not guilty of any crime. Guilty of holding a Dewalt cutoff saw. However, the LEO could come and check inside his vehicle and see what's there.

Sorry, you're wrong about that.

Possessing a crow bar and standing at a door where you don't live can be charged.

"Penal Code 466 PC is the California statute that makes it a crime for a person to possess burglary tools with criminal intent. The offense is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in the county jail."

[911 Rod]

Pretty informative.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpuAv0sTh-w

[Otter74]

[hcoles]

Originally Posted by Zeke

Sorry, you're wrong about that.

Possessing a crow bar and standing at a door where you don't live can be charged.

"Penal Code 466 PC is the California statute that makes it a crime for a person to possess burglary tools with criminal intent. The offense is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in the county jail."

I'll stand somewhat corrected. Apparently the LEOs that came to the seane didn't think there was a crime committed or at least one that the DA wants to take on.
In out jurisdiction they use the 4 prong test:
- did a crime happen?
- do we know the exact ID of the perp?
- can we prove it beyond a reasonable doubt with ease?
- is it the right thing to do?

Is a Dewalt tool fall under the legal definition of a burglary tool? I don't know.

The question I think we are attempting to ask... Does enforcement and penalty reduce the occurence of this crime enough to satisfy the State? These crimes are against the State unless it is a civil matter pressed by the private party or business.

[A930Rocket]

Originally Posted by Otter74

If the dirt bag could just read, it would be awesome.

Many times, I’ve told somebody what to do, written down what to do and drawn a picture. They still don’t get it. You can’t fix stupid

[DavidI]

Originally Posted by hcoles

I'll stand somewhat corrected. Apparently the LEOs that came to the seane didn't think there was a crime committed or at least one that the DA wants to take on.
In out jurisdiction they use the 4 prong test:
- did a crime happen?
- do we know the exact ID of the perp?
- can we prove it beyond a reasonable doubt with ease?
- is it the right thing to do?

Is a Dewalt tool fall under the legal definition of a burglary tool? I don't know.

The question I think we are attempting to ask... Does enforcement and penalty reduce the occurence of this crime enough to satisfy the State? These crimes are against the State unless it is a civil matter pressed by the private party or business.

The officer could have written a "suspicious circumstances - possible grand theft" report and detailed everything discovered and found, especially if there was suspect information. To make an arrest, the officer would need probable cause, not proof beyond a reasonable doubt. The suspect could have been arrested, interviewed by detectives, a search warrant written for his cell phone (communication and GPS locations), and vehicle(s) identified. If he was on probation or parole and his search conditions allowed for search of his residence, a roll-back could have been done as well.

Any item can be considered a "burglary tool" if the officer can articulate how the specific item can be used and its capability.

David

[hcoles]

Originally Posted by DavidI

The officer could have written a "reasonable suspicion" report and detailed everything discovered and found, especially if there was suspect information. To make an arrest, the officer would need probable cause, not proof beyond a reasonable doubt. The suspect could have been arrested, interviewed by detectives, a search warrant written for his cell phone (communication and GPS locations), and vehicle(s) identified. If he was on probation or parole and his search conditions allowed for search of his residence, a roll-back could have been done as well.

Any item can be considered a "burglary tool" if the officer can articulate how the specific item can be used and its capability.

David

Thanks for the clarification. I guess the key is "could have" but didn't. Why did the officer let this person go? Almost caught red handed - or with a Dewalt yellow handed. :-)

[DavidI]

Originally Posted by hcoles

Thanks for the clarification. I guess the key is "could have" but didn't. Why did the officer let this person go? Almost caught red handed - or with a Dewalt yellow handed. :-)

I can only think of two reasons:

1. Inexperience and did not understand how to write a "suspicious circumstances" report

2. Laziness!

[hcoles]

Originally Posted by DavidI

I can only think of two reasons:

1. Inexperience and did not understand how to write a "suspicious circumstances" report

2. Laziness!

Likely #2 - Who wants to do hours of paperwork/phone calls and potentially court appearances when you can avoid it. I wonder if in this case the suspect would need to have been taken to jail. I imagine that's somewhat of a process.