LoJack System Helps the Durham Police Department Recover Stolen Lexus RX 300 with Two Arrests
- July 12, 2019
- Law Enforcement
In
May 2019, the owner of a 2000 Lexus RX 300 contacted the Hillsborough Police
Department to report their vehicle stolen from the driveway of the residence
sometime during the night. The owner
believes there was a second set of keys in the vehicle. The Hillsborough Police
Department verified the theft and entered
the vehicle information into the state and federal crime computers, which
automatically activated the LoJack® System concealed
in the Lexus. The Hillsborough Police
Department also had reports of two additional vehicles being stolen and
multiple vehicles being broken into during the night in the same residential
area.
After the vehicle was entered into the National Crime Computer Database, an
Officer from Durham Police Department, Durham, NC, picked up the silent LoJack
signal from the stolen Lexus 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 Officer tracked the vehicle and located it parked at a pawnshop.
The
Officer discovered the vehicle occupied and took two suspects into
custody. A search of the vehicle
revealed items believed stolen from vehicles from some of the Hillsborough
Police Department’s cases. The suspects
were arrested and charged with Possession of a Stolen Vehicle with possible
additional charges. Durham, NC is
approximately 14 miles from Hillsborough, NC and investigators with both the Hillsborough
PD and the Durham PD are looking into the case as a join investigation to
determine if the suspects in this case are responsible for an epidemic of auto
break-ins in the area.
The LoJack® System was installed in the Lexus in December 1999 at Lexus of
Cerritos, Cerritos, California.