Quick Action by Houston Police and State Helicopter Result in Recovery of Kia SUV and 2 Arrests
- June 30, 2012
- recovery stories
On June 14, 2012, the owner of a 2008 KIA Sorrento SUV contacted the Baytown Police Department to report that their vehicle was stolen from the driveway in front of their residence in the city of Baytown, Texas. Their other vehicle, a Honda that was parked next to the SUV, was burglarized and the spare keys to the KIA were taken from its console.
Baytown Police Department verified the theft and entered the vehicle’s information into the state and federal crime computers, which automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed in the KIA SUV.
A short while later, the state helicopter, DPS unit 102 from the Texas Department of Public Safety, picked up the silent LoJack homing signals from the stolen KIA on the Police Tracking Computers installed in their police helicopters. Following the directional and audible cues from the LoJack computers, they tracked the vehicle and located it traveling on a public street in Houston, Texas. Unit 102 made contact with Houston Patrol ground officers and gave them location and direction of travel. Houston officers quickly surrounded the vehicle and forced it to a stop. Two occupants were arrested without further incidence for felony theft, and criminal trespassing. The vehicle, valued at $15,000, did not sustain any damage.
The LoJack Vehicle Recovery System was installed in the 2008 Kia Sorrento in October of 2008 at Community Toyota, Baytown, TX.