According to scanner traffic, at approximately 8:50 a.m. a Ukiah resident on Willow Avenue reported their vehicle’s catalytic converter had been stolen. Officers were responding to the residence.
Fort Bragg Police Department issued an advisory to city residents in November of similar ongoing thefts specifically targeting Toyota Priuses.
Cloverdale Police Department issued a statement on their Facebook page on January 6, 2020, regarding similar thefts in their area. The statement explained that the most common vehicle targeted catalytic converters thieves is the Toyota Prius. Catalytic converters are valuable to thieves because they contain ” precious metals inside including platinum, palladium, nickel, etc.” which are valuable when recycled.
The statement from Cloverdale Police Department said thieves often target residential neighborhoods and take place in the early morning/pre-daylight hours.
There are several options for vehicle owners to secure their catalytic converters such as asking an automotive repair shop to weld the bolts, or purchasing devices known as a Catloc or a CatClamp.
