Father, son catch catalytic converter thief on their own

DAYTON — A father and son duo say they were tired of thieves stealing catalytic converters from their company’s cars, so they took matters into their own hands.

Security cameras caught a man stealing catalytic converters from three separate vans at the Vulcan Tool Company. The man, later identified as Joshua Burns, cutting through the fence and sneaking in for about a week straight.

“You don’t know where it’s going to stop,” Ashley Webb, Vulcan Tool Company president said.

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Every time Burns would show up, Webb would call the police, but he’d be gone by the time they’d show up, so Webb and his son took the next step. They added cameras and paid attention to where he was coming from.

From those cameras, he got a clear shot of Burns, as he came up to one of the cameras trying to disguise himself, but Burns still wasn’t caught. After three of six converters were stolen, Webb and his son decided to set a trap.

They left three vehicles out and had bought flashlights and bats, but Burns arrived after they left. The next night, they caught him on camera again and blocked the only way in and out of the business.

Webb’s son came down a hill with a bat, turned and saw Burns in a small space behind an air conditioning unit.

“I started just yelling at him that I’d beat the living daylights out of him if he moved an inch, Ethan Webb said.

The Webb’s called the police to take Burns into custody. They said the police were “pretty impressed” with their efforts.

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“Vigilantism was not on my bucket list for life, but I did get to cross it off anyway,” Ethan Webb said.

Burns has since pleaded guilty to charges against him. He’s been ordered to pay the Webb’s back for damages.

“The repairs totaled about $8,500,” Ashley Webb said, but noted he doesn’t expect to see that money back.

The Webb’s learned from this and now every car’s catalytic convertor is branded with the Vulcan logo.

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