Parolee Arrested for Theft of Classic Acura — Las Vegas Police Tie Suspect to Ten Other Stolen Cars
- March 26, 2012
- recovery stories
The owner of a classic 1991 Acura Integra was unaware that the vehicle was equipped with a LoJack Stolen Vehicle Recovery System, but was glad it was during the early morning hours of February 26, 2012. That morning, the owner left work at the Excalibur Hotel and Casino to discover the car missing from the parking lot. The owner immediately contacted the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department to report the theft.
After verifying the theft and completing a vehicle theft report, the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police entered the vehicle’s information into the state and federal crime databases – a routine police action that automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed within the Acura.
Later that afternoon, an officer with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department’s “Northeast Area Command” began picking up the silent LoJack signal on the LoJack Police Tracking Computer installed in his patrol vehicle. Following the directional and signal strength cues on the computer, the officer tracked the Acura to the backyard of a home near Linn Lane and East Lake Mead. While awaiting the arrival of Auto Theft Detectives, the officer observed a suspect driving the car out of the backyard at a high speed. Officers pursued through residential neighborhoods, but backed off for safety reasons. Minutes later, the officers located the Acura, abandoned. They established a perimeter around the area and established a ground search with a canine unit. The suspect, recently paroled from Nevada State Prison for Grand Theft Auto, was located hiding nearby. A perimeter was established, and a ground search was conducted using a Canine unit. The suspect has cooperated with police and has been linked to ten other recent Honda and Acura thefts from the Las Vegas Strip. This remains an ongoing police investigation.
The police later released the classic Acura back to the grateful owner. The LoJack Vehicle Recovery System was installed in this Acura at Santa Monica Acura on November 14, 1990.