At 6 a.m. in early December, an unlabeled white tow truck cruised into Jesse Curler’s Chino neighborhood. Curler had saved up for 4 years to purchase his prized Cadillac CTS-V coupe, and in 30 seconds, it was gone.
The tow truck driver stopped in entrance of the automobile, latched on utilizing a self-loading elevate and drove away with out ever leaving the truck. The theft of Curler’s automobile is a part of a sample during which autos have been snatched from driveways and neighborhood curbs throughout San Bernardino County, stretching again for almost a 12 months.
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“I spent three hours calling the encompassing police stations … saying, ‘Hey, did you guys tow this car?’ and so they all mentioned ‘No,’” Curler mentioned. “That’s how I knew it wasn’t a mistaken [repossession]. My automobile was simply gone.”
In Southern California, repossession of a automobile whose proprietor is behind on mortgage funds isn’t unusual. However firms are legally required to report the tow to police. Victims with whom The Occasions spoke mentioned that their automobiles weren’t behind on funds, and that native police initially had no information of their automobiles’ whereabouts.
San Bernardino County sheriff’s officers informed The Occasions in a press release that they had been conscious of thefts utilizing a white tow truck of their jurisdiction and confirmed reviews of the crime in neighboring counties. The division additionally mentioned it had elevated the case to a specialised division that was conducting an investigation.
“At first I believed it was simply me, however then I went on-line and noticed that it’s occurring to so many individuals,” Curler mentioned. “My buddy informed me that he noticed the identical white tow truck driving round his neighborhood in Chino, too. This thief is simply on the market.”
On Fb, residents from Rancho Cucamonga to Victorville have shared video of of luxurious automobiles and Toyota and Chevrolet vehicles being towed from in entrance of their properties in incidents that date again to at the least March and as lately as New 12 months’s Day. The movies all present a tow truck pulling right into a driveway or alongside a curb and quietly leaving with a car.
Adelanto resident Adrian Medina mentioned he was in shock after his Chevrolet Camaro disappeared from his road in early November. After posting his surveillance video of the theft on Fb, he mentioned he obtained an outpouring of messages from San Bernardino County group members sharing an identical tales.
“I didn’t even know this was occurring till it occurred to me. Someone must cease this man as a result of, from what I can see, it’s been happening since early final 12 months, and it looks like it’s rising,” Medina mentioned.
In interviews with The Occasions, many victims of the thefts reported no updates on their missing-vehicle reviews. However Curler mentioned his was discovered — in items. Police known as a couple of week after his report, notifying him that his Cadillac was noticed by license plate scanners in Compton and directed him to a tow yard the place it was saved. Ecstatic, he made the almost hourlong drive with a member of the family solely to find that the automobile had been stripped for elements.
“I went to the tow yard, and that’s once they mentioned, ‘It’s been fully stripped.’ I am going take a look at it and it was simply fully destroyed,” Curler mentioned. “I imply, they even took the seats. Actually the whole lot was gone however the shell. I used to be heartbroken.”
San Bernardino resident April Zavala mentioned her automobile was stolen round midnight one night time in March by a white tow truck. She says police nonetheless haven’t given her any info on progress within the investigation into the theft.
“The one means I do know it was a tow truck was due to our house cameras. It’s the identical technique, backing up and taking the automobile in minutes,” Zavala mentioned. “I believe that it’s an auto theft ring.”
Authorities mentioned that they weren’t ruling out organized crime within the investigation.
Zavala mentioned she had a few of her late mom’s possessions in her automobile when it was stolen, and that’s “what damage probably the most.”
“That went with it,” Zavala mentioned. “I simply need the individuals which might be doing this caught. It takes lots out of you once they take one thing that you simply labored exhausting for.”
Anybody with info on the thefts is requested to report back to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Division on-line or at (909) 384-5742.
