Monroe business suffers big loss from converter thefts

Marshal’s Motors, a wellknown Monroe establishment, suffered a huge loss on February 12 as it was reported a thief came onto the property at 5:58 a.m. and by the time he left at 7:30 had collected 16 catalytic converters from box-style trucks.

Matt Zimmerman, vice president of the company, told the Democrat the thief was especially bold given the fact he was still on the property in broad daylight and the fact that Marshal’s Motors is located at a heavily traveled area in Adams County at US 27 and CR 100 N.

The company has videos of the man but police are still investigating the incident. “It was a one-man operation and you can tell it certainly wasn’t the guys’ first rodeo,” Zimmerman noted.

A $3,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the individual responsible has been posted with Heiser Automotive, Bug Free Pest Control, and Marshal’s Motors all putting in $1,000.

Zimmerman said for someone experienced who knows what they are doing, a catalytic converter could be removed in about one minute. The cost of a new device would run about $1,200 for the type stolen at Marshal’s Motors but when removed and sold for scrap as in this instance, a person could get about $500.

That $500 won’t be easy, however, as Zimmerman said recycling centers and scrap yards won’t take catalytic converters.

A converter is made of valuable metals such as rhodium, platinum, and palladium and is designed to regulate harmful substances from a vehicle’s exhaust system.

“Where he’s going with ‘em, I really don’t know. Something on the black market or something under the table,” Zimmerman estimated.

Zimmerman said a neighbor who lives next to the business reported seeing the man on the lot “but we have people come and go all the time so it really didn’t raise a red flag for him.” The video recording taken shows the man’s face and vehicle he was driving but unfortunately didn’t get the license plate of the vehicle.

Zimmerman said the company is pretty much on the hook for the cost of the theft due to a high insurance deductible. “I’m not going to file a claim because of that and we’ll just have to foot the bill ourselves,” he noted. He said added security to the lot will include a gate, more alarms, and more security cameras.

He said he was unaware of other such thefts of this nature in terms of numbers in this immediate area but added catalytic converter thefts in the Fort Wayne area are common. “It’s an unfortunate situation, but we’ll survive,” he concluded.