Acquaintance Claimed to Take LR2 in for Service, Actually Stole Car
- June 25, 2012
- recovery stories
In mid-May 2012, the owner of a 2010 Land Rover LR2 needed some work done on her vehicle. An acquaintance who she barely knew volunteered to take her vehicle to Land Rover to get it repaired. After a week or so she called Land Rover to inquire about the vehicle, but was told that the vehicle was never brought into the dealership. When she tried to call the person who had allegedly brought the vehicle in for service, he would not answer his phone. On the evening of May 24, the owner contacted the New York Police Department to report the crime. After verifying the theft, NYPD officers had the Land Rover’s information entered into the state and federal crime computer systems, which activated the LoJack transponder concealed in the vehicle.
A short time later, the Police of the Manhattan North Task Force Unit picked up the Land Rover’s LoJack signal on the LoJack Police Tracking Computers installed in their police vehicles. Following the directional and audible signals on the LoJack Tracker, the officers tracked the vehicle to a residential area in the East Harlem section of Manhattan. There, they located the vehicle parked on a residential street. They staked out the Land Rover for several hours, but when no one returned for it, they took the vehicle into custody. Examination of the vehicle revealed that there was no damage, aside from a large scratch on the passenger side door.
Police notified the owner of the recovery, who was elated to learn that the vehicle was recovered so quickly and with such little damage.