Philadelphia Police Use LoJack to Recover Lincoln Mark VIII Stolen from Prison, 2 Arrested

On Thursday, September 20, 2012, the owner of a Lincoln Mark VIII was visiting a friend who was incarcerated in the Philadelphia Prison located on State Road in Philadelphia. At the conclusion of her visit, the vehicle owner discovered that she had misplaced her vehicle keys. Then, she arrived at the prison parking lot to discover that her vehicle had been stolen, and contacted the Philadelphia Police to report the crime.

Philadelphia Police arrived on site and verified the theft; they then had the Lincoln’s information entered into the state and federal crime computers. This routine police action automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed in the vehicle.

A short while later, officers from the Philadelphia Police Department’s 35^th District picked up the silent LoJack homing signals from the stolen Lincoln on the Police Tracking Computers installed in their patrol vehicles. Following the directional and audible cues from the LoJack computers, the officers tracked the Lincoln to the area of 3900 North Darien Street. There, they observed the stolen vehicle, with two women inside.

The officers pulled behind the stolen Lincoln, notified Philadelphia Police Radio of the situation, and continued to follow the vehicle until they determined that the general public would not be endangered by police activity. The officers then signaled the driver to pull over; the driver complied, and both suspects were placed under arrest without further incident. Members of the Major Crimes Auto Squad, in the area conducting an unrelated investigation, came to the aid of the uniformed officers. During their investigation, the driver of the vehicle informed the investigator that she and her passenger had been at the Philadelphia Prison visiting and counseling an incarcerated acquaintance. She claimed that she had found vehicle keys in the ladies rest room, located the Lincoln Mark VIII in the parking lot, and drove off in the vehicle.  Both women were formerly charged by the Major Crimes Investigators with theft violations.

The LoJack Vehicle Recovery System was installed in the Lincoln Mark VIII on August 22, 1997 at Old Forge Lincoln Mercury.