Cops Bust California Garage, Seize 2,000 Stolen Catalytic Converters and $300,000 Cash

Busting this garage paid off, literally. California authorities busted a garage in Elk Grove which led to the recovery of stolen goods and hundreds of thousands in cash. Deputies report that they seized nearly 2,000 stolen catalytic converters and around $300,000 from the garage.

Typically, when you think massive bust, you think drugs or other illegal activities. However, this time, there was a big pile of catalytic converters on the garage floor and mountains of cash.

You may think “why?” or that there has to be a better item to cash in on, however, catalytic converter theft is on the rise as the price of materials used in them skyrockets. The materials are metals such as palladium and can cost well over $2,000 per ounce, which leads to people valuing them quite a bit.

Unfortunately, if you’re the victim of catalytic converter theft, replacing it can be costly. In order to help protect your vehicle, police recommend using alarms and cameras along with marking your vehicle’s catalytic converter with a serial number or another identifying marking.