9 Stolen Vehicles and Parts Worth $85K+ Recovered in Chop Shop Bust in Atlanta
- January 31, 2012
- recovery stories
On the morning of January 18, 2012, the owner of a 2009 Toyota Camry reported to the Dekalb County Police Department that someone had stolen his vehicle from his driveway during the night.
Dekalb County Police responded to the scene, prepared a stolen vehicle report and had the stolen Toyota’s information entered into the state and federal crime computers. This routine police action automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed in the Camry and initiated the tracking of the vehicle. The owner was unaware that a LoJack system had been installed in the vehicle by a LoJack certified technician at the World Toyota dealership where it was purchased!
A short time later, the unit hidden inside the stolen Camry began emitting a silent LoJack signal to police cars in the area. An Atlanta Police Helicopter, equipped with a LoJack Police Tracking Computer, began tracking the stolen Camry to in a wooded area within the city limits. The officers quickly spotted the stolen Camry hidden in the woods, and several suspects removing parts from other vehicles at the scene.
The Air Unit quickly called for ground units to respond to the location; when they arrived, they found several vehicles being taken apart. Detectives were called to the scene to process the scene and to identify the vehicles. In total, nine stolen vehicles were recovered, along with several pieces of car parts; the total amount of the recovery was more than $$85,000. Two suspects were arrested at the scene and additional arrests are pending.