LASD Air & Ground Units Use LoJack to Recover Stolen Toyota 4Runner, Arrest 2 Suspects
- March 30, 2013
- recovery stories
On the night of February 19, 2013, the owners of a 2007 Toyota 4Runner contacted the Monterey Park Police Department to report their vehicle had been stolen.
Monterey Park Police verified the theft and entered the vehicle information into the state and federal crime computers, which automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed in the vehicle.
A short while later, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Air-8 flight deputies were on routine patrol when they received the silent LoJack signal from the stolen Toyota. They tracked the signal approximately five miles and located a vehicle matching the description transitioning from the 57 Freeway to the E/B 10 Freeway.
A patrol unit from the Walnut station was directed to the vehicle and confirmed the license plate. The stolen Toyota continued eastbound and exited at Garey Avenue, where a female passenger got out of the vehicle. The suspect then continued on to Garey Avenue and Pearl, where he exited the Toyota and ran into an apartment complex. Air-8 directed assisting ground units to an apartment that the suspect had entered. Deputies contained the apartment and demanded the suspect come out and surrender; the suspect did so without further incident. The investigating deputies reported that both the suspect driver and passenger were booked for driving a Motor Vehicle Without Owner’s Consent and Receiving Stolen Property. The vehicle, valued at approximately $17,500, was stored and later returned to its owners. The case was referred to the Walnut Station Detectives for filing.
The LoJack Vehicle Recovery System was installed in the Toyota 4Runner at Wondrie’s Toyota on September 7, 2007.