BMW Stolen from Dealership During Test Drive, Long Beach Police Recover Vehicle, Arrest Suspect
- September 10, 2012
- recovery stories
On July 29, 2012, the owner of a 2007 BMW X5 contacted the Signal Hill Police Department to report that their vehicle was stolen from their car dealership lot during a test drive in Signal Hill.
Signal Hill Police verified the theft and entered the BMW’s information into the state and federal crime computers, which automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed in the vehicle.
Minutes later, officers from the Long Beach Police Department picked up the LoJack signal from the stolen BMW on the Police Tracking Computer installed in their patrol vehicle. Following the directional and audible cues from the LoJack computers, the Long Beach Police Department notified the Signal Hill Police Department, who responded to assist in the tracking. The BMW was observed, parked and unoccupied in the 3400 block of Atlantic Avenue. The Signal Hill officer notified the car dealership of the recovery and the sales person (witness) who observed the suspect steal the vehicle responded to retrieve the vehicle.
While at the location, the witness observed the suspect walking down the street and notified the officers. After a short foot pursuit, the suspect was apprehended and arrested for Driving without Owner’s Consent. A Signal Hill Detective conducted a follow-up investigation and was able to identify the suspect as the same suspect who had stolen a 2008 Infiniti G37 from another dealership during a test drive. The suspect had pictures in his cell phone of him posing with both stolen vehicles. The detective was able to charge him with two counts of 10851 VC and a variety of other charges.
The vehicle, valued at $55,750, was recovered intact without any damage.
The LoJack Vehicle Recovery System was installed in the 2007 BMW X5 on September 4, 2007 at South Bay BMW in Torrance, California.