LoJack Helps Police Uncover an International Theft Ring in Mexico — Jeep Stolen in San Diego Recovered
- January 17, 2012
- recovery stories
On December 19, 2011, the owner of a 2010 Jeep Wrangler contacted the San Diego Police Department to report the vehicle stolen.
The San Diego Police responded to the scene, prepared a stolen vehicle report and had the stolen Jeep’s information entered into the state and federal crime computers. This routine police action automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed in the Jeep and initiated the tracking of the vehicle.
A short time later, officers from the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department and San Diego Police Department began receiving the silent homing signals from the stolen Jeep on the LoJack Police Tracking Computers installed in their patrol vehicles. Following the computer cues, the officers determined that the Jeep was across the border in Tijuana, Mexico.
Two days later, on December 21, police officers in Baja California, Mexico, picked up the LoJack signal from the stolen Jeep on their LoJack computers. They tracked the vehicle into a residential area of Tijuana, where they located the stolen Jeep Wrangler at a local residence. At the property, they also located two other vehicles — a 1999 Chevrolet Suburban and a 1999 Ford F-250 — which were both stolen in Mexico. Officers made six arrests in total at the scene. This case will be turned over to the Federal Attorney’s Office in Tijuana, for prosecution for possession of the California stolen vehicle. Investigators from Mexico and the United States will continue the investigation of this theft ring.
The Jeep Wrangler was recovered intact and undamaged; it was stored pending return to the owner.