Recovery of Stolen Honda Civic in Los Angeles Leads to Discovery of Chop Shop, Two Arrests
- March 13, 2012
- recovery stories
On February 27, 2012, LAPD Newton Division officers picked up the LoJack signal from a 1997 Honda Civic reported stolen two days earlier to the LAPD 77th Street Division. Following the directional and signal strength cues on the LoJack Tracking Computer installed in their patrol vehicle, the officers were able to track the stolen Honda to the 6500 block of Avalon Boulevard. There, they determined that the signal was coming from the inside of a closed, pillow-stuffing business, located in the rear of a larger manufacturing business.
BAD Detectives and Newton Street Detectives quickly responded to the location. The Detectives left to obtain a search warrant for the location, leaving officers to maintain surveillance on the location. During this time, a female and a male suspect drove to the rear of the business, observed the officers and attempted to flee. Both suspects were quickly taken into custody. Witnesses identified the suspects as the people who were renting the location in question. Officers recovered keys to the location from the female suspect, and the male suspect admitted to knowing that the stolen vehicle was inside.
Officers returned with the search warrant, entered the building, and discovered the stolen 1997 Honda inside, in the process of being stripped. Officers recovered the Honda, along with another stolen Honda engine and the transmission to a third stolen vehicle. In the search process, officers managed to locate five other stolen Hondas in the area, which detectives are connecting to the suspects. The suspects were arrested for Operating a Chop Shop. BAD Detectives, in conjuction with Newton Detectives, are conducting the follow-up investigating.
This is the second time in two years that the Honda Civic has been stolen and recovered utilizing LoJack.