We’re wondering who they reported the theft to?
A report from Mission Local claims the catalytic converters were cut off 4 different San Francisco Police Department vehicles on September 12. The theft wasn’t discovered until sometime in the afternoon, making it possible the cat burglars struck in the middle of the night. Although, with the way crime has been raging in San Francisco while police do little, it could’ve happened right in front of some officers for all we know.
In the past, police have been called to scenes where catalytic converter thieves have been caught red-handed. Instead of arresting and citing the suspects, San Francisco’s finest have let them go, in one case even giving the suspect directions to a bus stop. It’s not hard to imagine why a lot of people aren’t feeling too sympathetic towards the department after it was hit.
All 4 of the police vehicles hit by thieves clearly have police badging on them, so the thieves obviously knew who they were stealing from. The fact they went ahead with the crime so much about how much thieves fear police in San Francisco.
On September 15, an official press release from the San Francisco Police Department announced a suspect was arrested for the catalytic converter thefts. While chasing two suspects at high speeds, the fleeing vehicle wrecked out, both suspects running away on foot. Officers chased down the driver, 28-year-old Lorrayna Puefua of San Francisco, who was found to have several outstanding warrants. The other suspect got away.
While catalytic converter theft has become quite the problem across the country, in some cities like San Francisco it’s absolutely exploded. Some blame prosecutors for refusing to charge thieves with crimes or cutting a sweet deal with them, essentially encouraging this kind of crime. That has to be demoralizing to police, meanwhile citizens are fed up as they’ve had to replace the cat on their vehicle, sometimes multiple times.
Sources: Mission Local, San Francisco Chronicle, San Francisco Police Department
Keyword: Thieves Steal San Francisco Police Catalytic Converters