Investigating catalytic converter thefts

RITZVILLE – Police Chief Dave McCormick raised the problem of catalytic converter thefts over the past several months during the City Council's Aug. 16 meeting.

Thieves seem to work in teams, he said. They're brazen, sometimes jacking up vehicles and chopping off converters with reciprocal saws in the dead of night.

Since the 1970s, the Environmental Protection Agency has required all newer cars to be outfitted with a catalytic converter-a small metal box clamped to the exhaust pipe that makes vehicle pollutants less toxic.

It's not clear where thieves sell the converters, but the crime can be...