Melroe Skid Steer Stolen and Sold for Scrap Metal — Recovered Intact at Scrap Yard in Houston
- May 9, 2012
- recovery stories
When the construction crew arrived at their job site in Harris County on April 7, 2012, they discovered that their rented 2010 Melroe skid steer had been stolen sometime during the previous night. The crew immediately contacted the Harris County Sheriff’s Department to report the theft.
Harris County deputies completed a stolen vehicle report and had the skid steer’s information entered into the state and federal crime computer systems. This routine police action automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed inside the equipment. Neither the owners nor law enforcement agents had to do anything else to activate the LoJack Stolen Vehicle Recovery Network because LoJack’s interface with law enforcement is both seamless and instantaneous.
Later that day, an officer with the Houston Police Department traveling south on I-45 near Greensport received the silent LoJack homing signal from the stolen skid steer. Following the directional and signal strength cues on the LoJack Police Tracking Computer installed in his patrol vehicle, the officer tracked and located the equipment hidden in a scrap yard near Airline Drive. The officer made contact with the owner of the scrap yard, who stated that he had purchased the skid steer for scrap metal. The officer made arrangements with Sunbelt Rentals to bring their equipment to the location and take possession of the skid steer. This remains an ongoing investigation.
The LoJack Vehicle Recovery System was installed in the skid steer at the original owner’s request in October 2010.