Zero reports made in first year of Denver ordinance put in place to track catalytic converter sales
For several years drivers in Colorado have had to worry about catalytic converter thefts. Last year the City of Denver approved an ordinance to track anyone stealing catalytic converters in an effort to deter thieves. Instead, thefts have gone up. In some areas it's up by more than 2,000%.
More than half of those thefts have occurred in District 7, which includes Denver International Airport. But the number of sales haven't been reported to police.
"Thus far we have not received any reports of a local scrap dealer or secondhand parts dealer purchasing used catalytic converters from an individual in our city," said Denver Police spokesman Doug Schepman.
Schepman said that could be due to multiple factors, including scraper dealers no longer purchasing the items, sales being pushed elsewhere or thieves finding a loophole.
"Sometimes people are actually removing the precious metals that have the value from the catalytic converter and selling them as separate items so they are not showing up with a converter or multiple for them," he said.
Of the six licensed auto part recyclers in Denver, only one was registered under the new ordinance.
A spokesperson with the Denver Department of Excise and Licenses says they notified all shops to be registered back in January. Now they will be looking into compliance issues.
"I am not taking my car to the airport ever again. Why risk it?" Randall Koczara said.
Koczara's 2013 Toyota Prius was targeted in a parking lot where he was paying nearly $20 a day, and one that he thought was secure.
"The car was 13 years old and they still stole the catalytic converter because that's where the value is. I think it's like $700 or $800 on the street," he said.
Koczara says he was without a car for more than 2 months.
"It's a very high inconvenience," he said.
CBS Colorado reached out to the members of the Denver City Council who approved the ordinance for their thoughts on how to improve it and didn't receive a response.
Airport officials have previously said they would be increasing security in their lots to try to reduce the number of thefts.
MORE INFORMATION: Colorado Auto Theft Prevention Authority
