Thieves strike parking lots

Catalytic converters go missing, provoking a commuter complaint about security

CHAPEL HILL -- Nearly 20 catalytic converters have been stolen from vehicles in two UNC-Chapel Hill park-and-ride lots in the past week.

It's a trend mirrored across the Triangle.

Raleigh police counted 152 catalytic converters stolen in 20 separate incidents between July and April. Last week, seven were stolen in one day from an auto repair shop in North Raleigh.

This spring, about 10 converters were stolen from SUVs over a few weeks on Duke's campus.

"This is an age-old problem," said Duke University Police Maj. Gloria Graham. "When the economy gets bad, that's when it starts to spike."

Catalytic converters, which help to clean engine exhaust, contain expensive metals such as platinum and can command up to $200 on the black market. SUVs are especially susceptible because their high ground clearance gives thieves easier access to the exhaust system.

"They are typically stolen from auto repair shops," said Raleigh Police spokesman Jim Sughrue. "Often the cars have been secured behind locked fences, but the subjects have broken in and stolen converters, often from multiple vehicles at the same location."

Sughrue said police are advising those who store large numbers of cars to lock them behind gates or inside buildings and keep the area well lit.

On Friday, three catalytic converters were stolen from UNC-CH's Friday Center lot off N.C. 54 and three from the Chatham County Park & Ride Lot of U.S. 15-501 near Cole Park Plaza. On Tuesday, six more were taken from the Chatham lot and seven from the Friday Center.

Pittsboro resident Richard Silc had his catalytic converter stolen from the Chatham lot Tuesday. Silc's truck was also damaged in May when someone tried to steal the converter. It cost him $200 to have it repaired, and now the replacement will cost $2,100.

The incidents have soured Silc on the university's Commuter Alternatives Program, which provides incentives for faculty, staff and students to walk or ride buses or bicycles instead of driving to campus.

"It is, in theory, a great service and a win/win for UNC and the employee," Silc wrote in an e-mail message. "However, I cannot afford to continue to use it. Does someone have to be injured or killed in a parking lot before UNC secures the area?"

Since June 2007, at least $5,000 worth of auto parts have been stolen from the Chatham lot, not counting most of Tuesday's thefts.

UNC-CH had a similar problem at the Friday Center lot from the summer of 2006 to the spring of 2007. More than $3,000 worth of car stereo equipment, a $500 air bag and a spare tire worth $200 were stolen in 12 separate incidents. More than $1,800 in stereo equipment was taken from three vehicles one day in November 2006.

After someone spooked a thief trying to steal Silc's catalytic converter in May, he wrote to UNC-CH Police Chief Jeff McCracken to complain about the lack of security.

"Some commuter could interrupt a thief during some odd time and then be assaulted or killed," Silc wrote in e-mail this week. "A large number of ladies, who work at UNC Hospitals, expressed concern for their personal security to me as we discussed the crime wave while riding to work."

UNC police spokesman Randy Young said his department is aware of the problem but declined to reveal operational procedures.

"Our police officers are responding appropriately at this time," Young said. "We're in communication with other agencies, and this is not isolated and limited to UNC."

Graham said Duke police are training officers who patrol parking lots to look not only for broken windows but also for legs sticking out from under vehicles.

"They're not that hard to steal, but you've got to saw them out of there," she said of the catalytic converters.