ROSEVILLE, Calif. — Two people have been arrested after Roseville police say a man and woman were caught trying to put a stolen catalytic converter in the back of a stolen car.
According to the Roseville Police Department, the thefts happened around 5:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 20. Officers found Plab Vang, 35, sitting in a car along the 800 block of Gibson Drive after receiving calls of suspicious activity in the area. When officers walked towards the car, which they learned later was stolen, they saw David Yang, 37, allegedly putting a catalytic converter in the back of the stolen car.
When Yang saw the officers, he ran.
Officers tracked Yang down to a nearby field and arrested him.
In June, police announced that catalytic converter theft was on the rise in Northern California. Highly-skilled thieves can steal a catalytic converter from a parked car in a minute or less. The car part is often stolen for the metal, which thieves sell to recycling companies for a hundred dollars or more. It is not a cheap part to replace.
Police say the two used a car jack to raise the cars off the ground in order to take the catalytic converter.
Both Yang and Vang were arrested and booked into the South Placer Jail on several charges, including possession of narcotics, grand theft, conspiracy to commit a crime.
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