LoJack® System Helps North Carolina DMV and Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department Recover Stolen 2006 Honda Pilot
- February 15, 2017
- recovery stories
The owner of a 2006 Honda Pilot reported an auto theft to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department after the victim discovered the vehicle missing from the parking lot of her apartment complex. The CMPD verified the theft and entered the vehicle information into the state and federal crime computers which automatically activated the LoJack® System concealed in the Honda.
Once the Honda was entered as stolen, an inspector with the North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles Charlotte Division picked up the silent LoJack signal from the stolen Pilot with the LoJack Police Tracking Computers (PTC’s) that are installed in patrol vehicles and aircraft. Following the directional and audible cues from the PTC, the Pilot was tracked to an apartment complex and was unoccupied. The inspector placed the Honda under surveillance. During the surveillance, a subject got into the Honda and drove off at a high rate of speed. When the inspector attempted a traffic stop, the driver of the Pilot began taking evasive driving tactics, to elude the officer, while driving through the apartment complex. Due to the area being residential, the inspector backed off the pursuit, called for assistance from the CMPD and continued tracking the stolen Honda with the PTC. Once the inspector left the residential area the Honda was located stopped at an intersection. A witness informed the inspector that a male, wearing dark clothing, ran from the Honda after striking a street sign and ran into a wooded area at the end of a nearby dead end street. Officers of the CMPD arrived on scene, set up a perimeter and attempted to track the suspect using a K-9; however, the suspect could not be located. The CMPD Crime Scene Investigation Unit responded to the scene to process the recovered Pilot for forensic evidence. Further investigation of this case was turned over to the CMPD Auto Theft Unit. The Honda Pilot was towed by a tow company of the victim’s choosing.
The LoJack® System was installed in the Honda Pilot in August 2006 at Crown Honda, Charlotte, NC.