Crime & Safety
Catalytic Converters Stolen Amidst 'Staggering' Nationwide Increase: Summit Police Chief
All the thefts were from vehicles made before 2010, police said. Thieves took the catalytic converters overnight Tuesday into Wednesday.
SUMMIT, NJ — Five residents of Summit reported that catalytic converters had been stolen from their cars sometime between Tuesday night and Wednesday morning, police said.
The affected vehicles were parked on Constantine Place, Glenside Avenue, and Walnut Street: a 2002 Honda Accord, a 2008 Toyota Tundra, and three Honda CR-Vs with model years 2004, 2008, and 2009.
Chief Steven Zagorski said these thefts come amid a huge increase in catalytic converter thefts across the country.
Find out what's happening in Summitfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
“Since 2019, there has been a staggering 1000% increase in thefts of catalytic converters nationwide,” Zagorski said Wednesday. “Summit was untouched by this trend but that changed for us and several neighboring municipalities last night. Patrols have been reconfigured to focus on areas of the city identified as the most vulnerable.”
Police recommend that people with vehicles park in well-lit areas, and in a garage if possible.
Find out what's happening in Summitfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
“Unlike most vehicle thefts that can be prevented by locking doors and removing key fobs, thefts of catalytic converters are more challenging for owners to prevent against," Zagorski said. "Converters on most cars are located underneath a vehicle near the exhaust system and easily accessible to thieves who crawl under the vehicle and quickly cut out the unit to turn a quick profit from the valuable material.”
Summit Police ask anyone with information that could help the investigation, including those who may have surveillance footage of the suspects, to contact detectives at (908) 273-0051.
Car and Driver magazine lists these cars as the most prone to catalytic converter theft:
- 1985 to 2021 Ford F-Series
- 2011 to 2017 Chrysler 200
- 1999 to 2021 Chevrolet Silverado
- 2001 to 2021 Toyota Prius
- 1987 to 2019 Toyota Camry
- 1997 to 2020 Honda CR-V
- 1990 to 2022 Ford Econoline
- 1989 to 2020 Honda Accord
- 2007 to 2017 Jeep Patriot
- 2005 to 2021 Chevy Equinox
Click here to read the full news release from the Summit Police Department.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
