MONROE CO. – The Monroe County Sheriff’s Office would like county residents and business owners to be aware of ongoing criminal activity.
In the last 12 months, Monroe County deputies have taken nearly 70 reports of catalytic converter thefts.
A catalytic converter is an essential part of a vehicle exhaust system that contains precious metals.
Police say a converter can be removed with a battery-powered saw in a matter of minutes.
The part is sold for several hundred dollars, leaving the vehicle owner with thousands of dollars in damages and part replacement.
The majority of these thefts have taken place between Thursday and Sunday during the nighttime hours.
Industrial and commercial areas on the near west side of Bloomington have been particularly targeted likely due to seclusion and poor lighting.
Business-owned pick-up and box trucks have proved to be easy targets since they have a high ground clearance and often sit unused for days or weeks at a time.
Police suggest that vehicles o are checked often and parked conspicuously with adequate lighting. Video surveillance and inexpensive IP cameras can be helpful to an investigation.
Police say unattended vehicles parked at boat ramps have also been targeted recently
The Dodge pick-up truck shown in the photo is one of the vehicles that was targeted on March 11th.
Any anyone with information is asked to call the Monroe County Detective Division at 812-349-2727.
