Cops Foil School-Bus Catalytic Converter Thefts

RAMAPO, NY — An overnight attempt to steal catalytic converters from school buses was foiled by Ramapo police Thursday.

The department received a report at 3:39 a.m. about a suspicious vehicle parked on Red Schoolhouse Road. Responding officers found evidence that people were cutting catalytic converters from school buses at the Chestnut Ridge Transportation facility.

Five converters had been removed, and a sixth was in the process of being removed, police said.

Ramapo officers with assistance from the Ramapo Police K9 unit, Rockland County Sheriff’s Department, and the Montvale, Park Ridge, Woodcliff Lake, and New York State police formed a perimeter and conducted a wide search.

They found and arrested three men.

Yonkers residents Daniel Martinez, 23, and Christian Peralta, 22, and Alberto Rodriguez, 21, from the Bronx, were charged with:

• Auto Stripping 1 st Degree (D-Felony)
• Criminal Mischief 2nd Degree (D-Felony)
• Grand Larceny 3 rd Degree (D-Felony)
• Criminal Possession of Stolen Property 3 rd Degree (D-Felony)
• Conspiracy 5 th Degree (A-Misdemeanor)
• Possession of Burglar’s Tools (A-Misdemeanor)
• Trespass (Violation)

All three were arraigned in the Village of Chestnut Ridge Court and released on their own recognizance with a future court date, police said.

Catalytic converters have become valuable targets for thieves who slide under vehicles and cut them out of the undercarriage. They are designed to reduce the pollutants and toxic gases the engine produces. They are made out of precious metals, including platinum, and can be re-sold at a very high mark-up on the black market. Palladium, another valuable metal used in converters, is also selling at an all-time high right now due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

SEE ALSO:

• State Police Report Rash Of Catalytic Converter Thefts In Mid Hudson Valley
• Catalytic Converter Thieves Caught In The Act: YPD
• Westfield Sees Multiple Thefts Of Catalytic Convertors
• Multi-State Chase Nabs Catalytic Converter Theft Suspect

Patch editor Remy Samuels contributed to this report.