Thieves swipe catalytic converter from shuttle owner's bus

A Winnipeg man says his fledgling shuttle business may be in trouble after thieves took off with the catalytic converter from his bus earlier this week.

Scott Stroh of Northern Sparrow Shuttles says he noticed something was wrong when he tried to turn on the engine Tuesday morning and heard an unusually loud noise coming from the bus.

"It sounded very loud and I knew something was wrong," he told CBC News on Thursday.

After he noticed something was missing on the underside of his vehicle, a friend came over and said it was his catalytic converter, an anti-pollution device that is part of the exhaust system.

Replacing the catalytic converter can cost up to $2,000 for Stroh, who said the theft has shut down his business for about a week as he waits for parts to arrive.

"Not only cancelling trips, but it's a huge financial burden," he said.

"It's one thing for somebody to break in the glass and take spare change. It's another thing to take a part off your vehicle that's going to disable it."

Stroh said he had launched Northern Sparrow Shuttles only a few weeks ago.

He is among a number of Winnipeggers who have had their catalytic converters stolen from their vehicles so far this year.

• A warning to vehicle owners - thefts of catalytic converters on the rise

Winnipeg police issued a warning to the public on Wednesday, saying the number of thefts of catalytic converters is on the rise.

Police said in 2012, 16 were stolen. In 2013, 11 were stolen. But in 2014 to date, 18 catalytic converters have been stolen from vehicles.

To remove a catalytic converter, thieves have to saw it out of the exhaust system. Police said an experienced thief can cut the device out of a vehicle in three minutes.

Catalytic converters contain valuable metals and can fetch between $40 and $300, police said, adding that sport-utility vehicles and trucks are often targeted because they are higher off the ground.

But Adam Chisick of Urban Mine, a scrap metal recycler in the city, says he would not buy metals from stolen catalytic converters.

"We judge the situation and then wewill call police," he said.

According to police, one person was arrested in 2012 for stealing a catalytic converter.