LoJack System Helps North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles License and Theft Bureau Recover Stolen BMW M5
- December 29, 2017
- recovery stories
A car dealership in the Charlotte Metro Area reported the theft of a 2006 BMW M5 to the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department. The dealership reported that they believed that an individual that had been on the lot the previous day inquiring about the BMW had stolen the key and returned later that evening to take the vehicle. There was video surveillance of an individual returning to the dealership after hours and driving off in the BMW.
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg PD verified the theft and entered the vehicle information into the state and federal crime computers which automatically activated the LoJack® System concealed in the BMW.
After the BMW was entered into as stolen, an inspector with the North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles License and Theft Bureau, Greensboro District, picked up the silent LoJack signal from the stolen BMW with the LoJack Police Tracking Computers (PTC) that are installed in patrol vehicles and aircraft. Following the directional and audible cues from the PTC, the inspector tracked the BMW to the parking lot of a hotel. The inspector requested additional officers and set up surveillance of the BMW, however, no one came out to the stolen vehicle. The inspector noted that the suspect had attached a stolen license plate to the BMW. The inspector recovered the BMW and called for a tow truck. After the BMW was towed, an individual attempted to go to the impound lot and retrieve the BMW. The inspector responded to the tow company impound lot and arrested the individual for Possession of a Stolen Vehicle and Possession of Stolen Property for the stolen license plate.
The LoJack® System was installed in the BMW M5 in May 2006 at Westchester BMW Mini in White Plains, New York.