Deputies: 1 detained after search for catalytic converter thief in Greene County

BEAVERCREEK TWP., Greene County — Deputies have detained one person for questioning following a multi-agency search for a person who was stealing catalytic converters from a storage facility in Beavercreek Twp. Wednesday, according to the Greene County Sheriff’s Office.

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Deputies were first called to the storage facility on Dayton-Xenia Road, near Kil-Kare Raceway around 7 a.m. after receiving reports of a person cutting catalytic converters from vehicles.

“There’s a lot of vehicles stored here, and we believe he was stealing them from the vehicles stored here,” Maj. Shawn Prall from the Greene County Sheriff’s Office told News Center 7

The thief was last seen running away on the nearby bike path and into a wooded area, Prall said. Several deputies and other departments responded to assist in the search including a K-9 officer and drone.

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The search was initially unsuccessful in locating the suspect, however a person was later detained and is being questioned by deputies stemming from this search and investigation. Deputies are not calling the person detained a suspect or a person of interest in the car part thefts.

The search and investigation prompted a lockdown of the nearby Trebein Elementary and Jacob Coy Middle schools, deputies said. The school complex was outside of the search perimeter but were placed on lockdown as a precaution.

Deputies were searching and processing the scene for evidence through Wednesday morning.

Catalytic converter thefts have become more common over the last year in Greene County with several businesses and churches filing reports with the sheriff’s office after the car parts are found cut off, Prall said. The cost of the components inside the catalytic converters makes it an enticing target for thieves, he said.

“It’s gotten real bad, and we all pay the price. Insurance rates go up to cover the costs and damage to these vehicles. Businesses suffer because vehicles they need to conduct business are rendered inoperable and sometimes takes several thousand dollars to get them operable again. It hurts the whole community,” Prall said.

Additional details were not released. We’ll update this story as we learn more.

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