Catalytic converter thefts - heads up (September 2019)

[Penguin68]

I have just heard (from my garage) that there is a spate of CAT thefts both locally and wider in London - leading to 3 month waiting lists for some spares! Police rumour has it that an Eastern European gang is behind many of these - the converters are removed on the street - cut-out quite brutally, with sensors taken as well (which is where the shortage is). If you see people working under cars (obviously particularly at night) - call the cops!

Although replacement costs to car owners (or their insurers, if they are prepared to pay) will be close to ?1000 when the costs of parts (?600 for a CAT, plus the sensors and electronics) and labour are taken into account, the thieves are probably only getting ?40-?60 for what they steal! [NB as the repair costs are so high, insurers will often try to write-off the vehicles based on their assessment of on-street value - and they pay-out only the cost over the excess anyway].

It looks like its the CATs themselves, and not just the platinum in them, that are now the target, as they are also taking sensors.

[kford]

Heard a few Toyota Priuses honking around without exhausts attached. Must be a target car.

[Bumpkin]

We had one stolen from our Toyota Prius a couple of months ago, was v expensive to replace as Penguin says. Only good thing was that Kwik Fit were fantastic at sorting it, had a new one in within the day. They said Sainsbury's car park had 3 cards affected in one day alone (that they knew of!). It's a regular trade for them now apparently.

The Sainsbury's cars were all the same make but not Toyota (can't remember now), so it's not just Prius'.

[Steffie2411]

Witnessed 3 men do just this yesterday on north cross road/upland road. In the middle of the day may I add! Just before school run. I only noticed because they looked very shifty/nervous and were wearing duffel coats and caps and I couldn't understand why there was a 3rd man in there get away car with the engine on! Please be vigilant even in the day time!

[mikeb]

I heard confirmation of this from a garage too yesterday. Not sure there is much you can do except to call the police. Or challenge dodgy-looking characters if you're feeling brave.

[Sue]

Steffie2411 Wrote:

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> Witnessed 3 men do just this yesterday on north

> cross road/upland road. In the middle of the day

> may I add! Just before school run. I only noticed

> because they looked very shifty/nervous and were

> wearing duffel coats and caps and I couldn't

> understand why there was a 3rd man in there get

> away car with the engine on! Please be vigilant

> even in the day time!

Did you get the reg number of the car?

[Steffie2411]

Yes. Gave it to the police and to the owner

[Sue]

Steffie2411 Wrote:

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> Yes. Gave it to the police and to the owner

Great! Hope they catch the bastards!

[ianr]

.

[Penguin68]

It looks like its the CATs themselves, and not just the platinum in them, that are now the target, as they are also taking sensors.

I've now been told that the sensors being taken may simply be because that's easier than leaving them behind for some CATs - it may still be just the platinum in the converter that's the target. The cars being targeted are the ones with the most readily accessible CATs for this type of road-side theft.

And yes, as others have also said, all we can do is look out for our neighbours and call the police if we see something suspicious. But at least we know that something untoward is happening out there and can be alert for it.

[Humdinger]

I was hoping the police stop i saw last night might have been connected to this. 3 undercover cars and 1 normal squad car had stopped a car outside the M&S beside East Duwlich station around 6pm. The three occupants, middle aged men of possibly Eastern European or maybe Turkish origin were handcuffed and the car being searched, i could see the boot was full of tools.

No idea whether they were arrested or not, they looked pretty relaxed about the whole thing which made me think they had nothing to hide, but its good to see the OB are active in the area.

[Penguin68]

They might equally have been relaxed if they had been caught bang-to-rights. Career criminals accept arrest (and sentence) as 'part of the job'. They may also assume (if they are foreign nationals) that they will get away with light sentences.

[Sally Eva]

Penguin68 Wrote:

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> They might equally have been relaxed if they had

> been caught bang-to-rights. Career criminals

> accept arrest (and sentence) as 'part of the job'.

> They may also assume (if they are foreign

> nationals) that they will get away with light

> sentences.

Why might they assume that they will get light sentences if they are foreign nationals?

[Penguin68]

Deportation of EU nationals and others for criminal offences is rising. At a time of prison overcrowding this may be the optimal way of serving justice and removing criminal elements from our society.

[SpringTime]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-49767195

[Sally Eva]

Penguin68 Wrote:

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> Deportation of EU nationals and others for

> criminal offences is rising. At a time of prison

> overcrowding this may be the optimal way of

> serving justice and removing criminal elements

> from our society.

In all the deportation cases I am aware of the criminal serves their sentence. If you have any evidence that their sentences are shortened by their nationality, I would be interested to see it. Once the sentence is served the foreign national may be transferred to immigration detention so that deportation can be arranged.

The length of the sentence will be part of the deportation case. Shortening the sentence would make deportation (which is legally challengeable) less likely because it can be used to argue that the crime is more trivial and so does not justify deportation.