GREENE COUNTY — Thieves in Greene County are making hundreds of dollars off stolen catalytic converters, but a new bill works to crack down on these crimes.
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News Center 7 checked, and there were 137,000 catalytic converter thefts in 2025.
A series of thefts has recently hit the Province apartment complex.
The sheriff’s office and property management said at least three catalytic converters have been stolen.
Dayleon Roberts lives at the complex.
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He said he’s worried about his car becoming a target.
“You don’t know if you finna be next, like oh my gosh. You don’t know if someone takes a key component of your car; how are you going to get to work?” Roberts said.
Greene County Sheriff Scott Anger said these thefts are nothing new, but the thieves are craftier.
“What’s bad is they’re getting to be more bold. They’re getting in areas that do have high foot traffic,” Anger said.
He said there’s been an uptick in thefts.
They’re stealing from school buses, company vans and cars in parking lots.
“When we say rise, we mean that there are multiple thefts in one area, so over the last few days it was The Province apartments in Bath Township,” Anger said.
It’s a costly crime, and thieves are after the precious metals inside the parts.
“On average, the person gets $50 to $450 in that range for one. Again, as I said earlier, $900 to $2,500 for someone to make a repair,” Anger said.
Roberts said for college students like himself, dropping hundreds, even thousands of dollars for a fix would wipe out his wallet.
“It would take a minute to come up with the money to replace, you know, a key component in your car,” Roberts said.
Now, a house bill sponsored by State Representative Phil Plummer has been signed into law and makes the illegal possession of catalytic converters a fifth-degree felony.
It also requires scrap dealers to verify ownership before buying the parts.
The law will take effect in 90 days.
In the meantime, Anger urges people to get cameras for their property.
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