WESTLOCK – Following a rash of brazen daytime catalytic converter thefts across the area, Westlock County councillors have agreed to raise the issue at the September tri-council meeting to try and find a regional solution.
Following 10 minutes of discussion at the July 18 committee of the whole meeting, councillors voted 6-0 (deputy-reeve Ray Marquette was absent) to direct CAO Tony Kulbisky to add the topic to the agenda of the Sept. 20 tri-council meeting that will include themselves, the Town of Westlock and Village of Clyde. Kulbisky, who presented some background on the issue and how other municipalities are dealing with it, will also direct his staff to add RCMP theft-prevention tips to their social media channels and encourage residents to stay vigilant and report suspicious activity.
Councillors also directed him to touch base with local repair shops and car dealerships to see what they’d be willing to do to help deter thefts — according to recent reports, around 3,350 catalytic converters were reported stolen in the Edmonton area in 2022, which is more than a 1,400 per cent increase from 2018 when there were only 213.
“We would like to see this at tri-council and talk to the town and village and see if we can come up with a regional approach,” said reeve Christine Wiese. “Getting out the information to try and prevent the thefts though is definitely good.”
Kulbisky’s briefing note states that catalytic converter thefts have continued to increase throughout Alberta and while the province introduced scrap metal legislation in November 2020 that required sellers to provide identification, the rate has not slowed.
Locally, Westlock RCMP dealt with a rash of thefts in May and June — the most recent occurred sometime between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m., June 8, when thieves stole a catalytic converter from a vehicle parked at the Rotary Spirit Centre. Meanwhile, between May 28 and 29, police dealt with three thefts, two of which happened at the Westlock Inn on Monday, May 29, between 11 a.m. and 11:16 a.m., while the third was at R.F. Staples School the prior day.
In those incidents, police continue to look for two men and one woman, while the suspect vehicle is a black Ford Fusion sporting a spare tire on the rear passenger side. One of the men was seen wearing a light-coloured (possibly camo) jacket and a black baseball cap, while the other man was wearing a black t-shirt, blue jeans, and white sunglasses. The woman, who was the driver, was wearing a light-green tank top, with her hair in a bun and possibly had tattoos on both of her upper arms.
The situation has been far more dire in the Barrhead area as RCMP there reported that as of mid-June they had received 27 reports of either thefts or attempted thefts.
In response, the Barrhead and Area Regional Crime Coalition (BARCC) launched an initiative where residents who have their vehicles serviced at select local repair shops can request to have their Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) engraved onto the catalytic converter.
Ultimately, BARCC, through Rural Crime Watch, purchased the engravers and made them available to participating shops — in a past interview Barrhead RCMP Sgt. Bob Dodds said the reason why catalytic converters are an attractive target is that they contain small amounts of precious metals, including platinum, palladium, and rhodium, the latter two of which fetch a higher price than gold on the commodities market.
“I thought it was quite innovative. At the very least it’s a crime deterrent,” added Kulbisky, while Coun. Sherri Provencal and Wiese agreed with his assessment.
Kulbisky also noted that the City of Leduc amended its business licence bylaw so that people transporting unattached catalytic converters needed a valid business licence for automotive repair or auto parts supply or have a permit from the RCMP — without a proper permit they could be fined $1,000 per catalytic converter. Kulbisky said that Strathcona County looked at the City of Leduc model and “felt that approach was not effective” as only one person was charged under the bylaw despite a 90 per cent increase in thefts between 2021 and 2022.
“Thieves are going to thieve … I don’t know how much we can do,” added Coun. Stuart Fox-Robinson, who did say that getting the tips out and touching base with local shops on the issue was worthwhile.
Westlock RCMP Detachment acting commander Cpl. Riley Sutherland said she had spoken previously to Kulbisky on the issue and likes the Barrhead model — while she admits it isn’t 100 per cent foolproof, it’s better than doing nothing. As for deterring catalytic converter thefts, RCMP advise people to park in a garage or an area covered by surveillance video that is well-lit and to park close to curbs to make access underneath their vehicle harder.
“I do like the Barrhead model; I think it’s a fantastic idea. Really, engraving the catalytic converter is just one more deterrent for thieves,” said Sutherland July 19.
