New Bedford is seeing an uptick in catalytic converter thefts, but police are also making headway in tracking down the thieves.
Officers on Friday arrested three people accused of driving around the city at night and cutting catalytic converters off numerous vehicles.
When officers arrested the three individuals, they also found a saw with a flashlight attached.
"Our officers have been out there diligently, looking for this stuff. Our officers are putting out these patrols, really trying to target this behavior to stop it," said New Bedford police chief Paul Oliveira.
Police also try to catch thieves when they show up at scrap metal yards trying to cash in catalytic converters, the priciest part of a car’s exhaust system.
Replacement of a catalytic converter can cost $1,000 or more.
"There's nothing worse than when officers go to the calls in the morning and people are going out to their cars and finding out their catalytic converter is gone and realizing they're out potentially thousands of dollars," Oliveira said.
NBC 10 News spoke to a local scrap yard that said they are screening people to make sure catalytic converters, which contain valuable precious metals, aren’t stolen.
Even if they do accept the converter, they only give $50 or $100 for them.
But Oliveira believes they're being sold out of state for much more.
"That's really the issue we're having is that had there not been a secondary market for them, there wouldn't be such a value for these perpetrators to continue to go out and steal them," Oliveira said.
Massachusetts and Rhode Island have laws to prevent catalytic converters from being stolen and sold elsewhere but it's up to scrap yards to enforce that policy.
Anyone with information on the catalytic converter theft going on along the South Coast is urged to contact the New Bedford Police Department.
New Bedford police said residents can report anonymous tips if they suspect someone of stealing catalytic converters or know where they can be sold.