Catalytic converters were stolen from nine Moorestown school buses, but transportation was not affected, officials say
Catalytic converter thefts from commercial and passenger vehicles have become an increasing problem around the country.
Police are searching for the people who stole catalytic converters from nine school buses at Moorestown High School over the weekend, authorities said.
The theft occurred early Saturday in the school’s main parking lot, where a fleet of buses are kept, said Moorestown Police Chief Walter Walczak. School officials reported the theft Saturday morning.
Catalytic converter thefts from commercial and passenger vehicles have become an increasing problem around the country. The exhaust emission control device, located between the engine and the muffler, contains valuable metals that can be melted down and sold.
School Superintendent Michael J. Volpe told 6ABC that transportation was not affected, and the district was able to repair the buses, which transport some of the most vulnerable students, he said.
Surveillance footage showed a white utility truck entering the parking lot next to the high school around midnight and leaving about three hours later, the chief said. The image was grainy and police were unable to obtain a description of the driver, or obtain the license-plate numbers, he said.
“We believe there were at least two suspects,” Walczak said Tuesday.
Authorities believe the thieves used hand tools, possibly hacksaws, to remove the catalytic converters from the nine mini-buses, according to the chief. There were also full-size school buses parked in the lot, but those run on diesel and don’t have catalytic converters, he said.
“They knew what they were doing,” the chief said.
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Walczak said police could not put a value on the theft. Catalytic converters can cost thousands of dollars to replace. They have become a target for thieves who sell the platinum, palladium and rhodium to scrap yards.
Police are checking additional surveillance footage from the area and traffic cameras, the chief said. Anyone with information is asked to call the Criminal Investigations Bureau at 856-914-3092.