Catalytic Converter Theft At Self-Storage Facilities Emerges Again

Catalytic converter thieves strike again. This time, the device – the part of a vehicle that reduces harmful emissions from the engine – was stolen from a motorhome being parked at a Devon Self Storage facility located at 25970 South Governors Highway in Monee, IL. 

The owner of the motorhome went to the facility on February 21, at around 10:52 a.m., and upon starting the engine, discovered the catalytic converter was missing. Monee investigators are looking into the theft.

The theft of catalytic converters has been an ongoing problem at self-storage facilities offering car and RV parking, with thieves targeting the converters for the valuable metals (rhodium, palladium, and platinum) they contain. However, the number of incidents has slowed ever since a large bust occurred in New York in 2023. As MSM reported at the time, two brothers, Alan and Andrew Pawelsky, along with co-conspirator Jovanie Clarke, were arrested and charged in an 81-count indictment alleging they engaged in a black-market catalytic converter trafficking operation. Officials estimated that the trio of thieves netted around $170 million between 2021 and 2022. The stolen catalytic converters came from numerous states, including California, Connecticut, Minnesota, and New York.

“Not only are catalytic converter thefts extremely costly to victims, but oftentimes these types of crimes fund larger criminal enterprises that put the community and country at a greater risk,” said Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agent Ivan J. Arvelo at the time.

Carol Mixon, who owns SkilCheck Services, has experienced catalytic converter theft at facilities in the past. Mixon told MSM in 2021 that some tenants would rent a small space, come on site, and bring someone to the RV area to steal the catalytic converters. Then, they could easily store the converters in their units and remove them later. Others simply throw a rug over a facility’s barbed wire fence and jump it during the night.

Mixon and Whitney Jurjevich, owner of Ameripark Covered Storage who has also experienced catalytic converter theft, along with Amy Amideo of the Arizona Self Storage Association (AZSA), put together a webinar on catalytic converter theft which you can view below.