Mesquite police recover more than a dozen catalytic converters during traffic stop; 3 men face charges

Composite image with background photo of Mesquite Police Patrol vehicles and overlay of police badge | Photos courtesy of the Mesquite Police Department, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — Three men are in jail in Nevada and over 15 catalytic converters were recovered during a traffic stop in Mesquite last month, one that prompted an investigation that led detectives to a storage yard where much of the criminal activity allegedly took place.

L-R: Robert Lee Hodges Fernando Contreras and Howard Ferguson were booked into the Clark County Detention Center following an arrest in Mesquite, Nev., Feb. 23, 2022 | Photo courtesy of the Mesquite Police Department, St. George News

An investigation was opened following a Feb. 23 traffic stop after an officer in Mesquite, Nevada, stopped a two-door passenger car shortly before 4 a.m. While speaking to the driver, the officer became suspicious when he noticed the man’s hands and clothing were covered in grease and oil, along with the two passengers traveling with him, Mesquite Police Sgt. Wyatt Oliver told St. George News.

When the officer shined his flashlight into the car, he noticed a number of used catalytic converters on the back seat of the vehicle that appeared to have been recently removed from several vehicles – gauging from the fresh cut marks on the devices that were clearly visible at the time.

Armed with a warrant, police searched the vehicle and recovered 16 catalytic converters – six were on the back seat and another 10 were in the trunk, Oliver said. Also recovered were burglary tools, drug paraphernalia and methamphetamine that was later seized by police.

Following the traffic stop, three suspects were arrested, including the driver, 55-year-old Robert Lee Hodges Jr., and Fernando Contreras, 38, both from Las Vegas, Nevada, as well as a California man, 51-year-old Howard John Ferguson, of Big Bear City. Due to the felony arrest, the trio was transported to the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

With the suspect’s in custody, the case was sent to the detective unit for follow up and also garnered the attention of Mesquite Police Chief MaQuade Chesley, who said in the release the Mesquite Police Department is dedicated to putting a stop to catalytic converter thefts – which continue to be a pervasive problem across the country.

Through the course of the investigation, detectives discovered a storage lot where 17 vehicles were located, all of which had their catalytic converter removed. The thefts had yet to be discovered or reported to police.

2021 file photo of a catalytic converter on the underside of a vehicle with a red arrow depicting the location of the converter, March 28, 2021 | Photo courtesy of the Mesquite Police Department, St. George News

Detectives also recovered several additional converters “the thieves left behind in this lot,” the department stated.

The 16 converters seized from the vehicle during the traffic stop were matched to the vehicles in the storage lot and the equipment was returned to the rightful owners.

Matching the equipment to the owners was no easy task, said Oliver, adding that detectives spent hours crawling under each of the vehicles to make sure they were able to match the converter to the vehicle it belonged to, and then to trace the owners that were contacted by police.

“Those detectives climbed under so many vehicles,” Oliver said. “I mean their clothes are ruined.”

The favorable outcome was the combination of excellent police work, a little luck and good timing, Oliver added, which also speaks to the patrol officer, whose efforts placed him in the right place at the right time. He was proactively patrolling the area when he spotted and then stopped the car in the middle of the night.

Oliver said the successful recovery of so many converters is not always the case, and in fact, he said, a majority of the catalytic converters that are stolen disappear without a trace, making it even more important for residents to take steps to protect their property.

Foiling the efforts of catalytic converter thieves 

To that end, there are ways to reduce the risk of becoming a victim of this type of thievery, and the Mesquite Police Department provided a list of steps people can take to prevent this type of criminal activity. The first step is to make sure the car is parked in the garage whenever possible, and if that is not an option, park in a well-lit area – as thieves prefer to work under the cover of darkness.

2021 file photo of catalytic converters and burglary tools recovered during a traffic stop in Mesquite, Nev., Oct. 9, 2021 | Photo courtesy of the Mesquite Police Department, St. George News

Applying a coat of paint to the catalytic converter also will make it easier to identify and less attractive to thieves. Oliver also said that etching the vehicle’s VIN number onto the converter also will help in matching it to a particular vehicle if it is stolen. Investing in a catalytic converter anti-theft device can help to deter criminals as well. There are also make-your-own anti-theft items and online tutorials that provide instructions on making such a device.

Such items include a steel shield that fits over the catalytic converter, requiring time and extra tools to remove, or putting a cage of rebar or other high-strength steel that’s difficult to cut, according to Nerd Wallet.

Getting to know the neighbors is also suggested, which will make it easier to recognize strangers who might be casing the area in search of parked vehicles.

Business is booming for catalytic converter thieves 

According to a study by the National Insurance Crime Bureau, in 2018 there were 108 catalytic converter thefts per month on average. Two years later that number rose to more than 1,200 average thefts per month in 2020. During this same period, the top five states for catalytic converter thefts were California, Texas, Minnesota, North Carolina and Illinois.

In 2021, 18 states were considering legislative actions to address the skyrocketing numbers, and this year, Utah took steps to address this type of criminal activity with the Property Theft Amendments bill, HB 038, which outlines additional penalties for catalytic converter theft and mandates more regulation of the devices.

The bill made its final pass through the Senate on Tuesday and is on its way to the governor’s desk for signature.

Following the arrest in Mesquite, all three men have each been charged with 11 counts of felony burglary of a motor vehicle, 17 gross misdemeanor counts of injuring or tampering with a motor vehicle, felony possession of stolen property, gross misdemeanor possession of burglary tools, felony possession of meth, and misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia. They remain in custody at the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Chesley said the detectives in the case worked hard to return the property to the victims “and hold these thieves accountable for their crimes against our beloved Mesquite residents.”

This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2022, all rights reserved.

Free News Delivery by Email

Would you like to have the day's news stories delivered right to your inbox every evening? Enter your email below to start!