HARRIS COUNTY, Texas – One Klein woman and her husband were just going to church on Sunday when they noticed their Toyota Tundra making a terrible noise. Like many, their catalytic converter had been stolen.
According to the Houston Police Department, the calls for catalytic converter thefts have been through the roof in 2021.
Stephanie Pinon and her husband went to Prince of Peace Catholic Church Sunday as they always do. Their church was having a blood drive and they stayed to participate. When they returned to their truck, they realized, in their church parking lot, thieves had sawed off their catalytic converter.
“My husband stayed after and gave blood. And when we went back to the truck... the sound... he knew what happened after the sound,” Pinon told KPRC 2. “So he got out. Looked underneath and sure enough... They took it.”
The clanking and guttural sound of their vehicle missing a vital part. Their catalytic converter was gone, carrying precious metals that thieves have been known to take and make money off of selling.
Houston police said there has been an exponential growth of catalytic converter theft calls since 2018. In 2018, there were just 85 calls. In 2019 there were 375 calls. In 2020: 2793 calls.
In 2021, through June, there have been 2,207 calls for catalytic converter thefts.
Pinon said the worst part was that it happened in a church parking lot.
“Of all places.. everybody is flabbergasted when I tell them the story,” Pinon said.
Like many, she and her husband now have to deal with the costs.
Luckily she has insurance. It will cost them a $1,000 deductible for the $4,000 job to repair their truck. And then there’s the rental car situation.
“They had a waiting list-- and they said how long?, ‘We really can’t tell,’” Pinon said.
They had to wait 4 days to get a rental and they were lucky to get one, Pinon said. Pinon hopes that the thieves will get caught. Investigators managed to find blood on the car, which Pinon said was likely the suspect’s blood.
“It’s unbelievable. It truly is and they can take it in 60 seconds or less,” Pinon said.
More info for how to help prevent thefts.