An Albuquerque resident's catalytic converter was stolen in broad daylight last month.
Thieves in the city efficiently stole a catalytic converter from a car in five minutes during the day, according to KRQE.
“They jumped out, they cut the catalytic converter out of the vehicle, they hopped back into the car as the video shows they drove away,” the victim, Matt, said to KRQE. “We didn’t know what happened until that evening as it was getting dark and I was getting out [of] work and the car was sounding funny.”
Catalytic converter thefts are on the rise due to the high resale value of the part, which contains precious metals, KRQE said. These precious metals include palladium, platinum, and rhodium.
Repair of the part can range from hundreds of dollars to $5,000. It is an essential repair because the converter is necessary for a car to run, according to KRQE.
“We would put a protective skid plate cover made out of steel aluminum to kind of cover the catalytic converter, to prevent gaining access to it and making it harder to remove and cut off,” Daniel Jacquez, owner of Zia Fabrication said to KRQE.
Another way to deter theft is by spraying heat-resistant paint onto the converter. This makes the process of selling it more difficult; the resale value decreases due to having to clean the part before recycling or selling.