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 raise and drove away with out ever leaving the truck. The theft of Curler’s automobile is a part of a sample by which automobiles have been snatched from driveways and neighborhood curbs throughout San Bernardino County, stretching again for almost a yr.
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“I spent three hours calling the encompassing police stations … saying, ‘Hey, did you guys tow this automobile?’ they usually all stated ‘No,’” Curler stated. “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 is just not unusual. However firms are legally required to report the tow to police. Victims with whom The Occasions spoke stated that their automobiles weren’t behind on funds, and that native police initially had no data of their automobiles’ whereabouts.
San Bernardino County sheriff’s officers instructed 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 stated it had elevated the case to a specialised division that was conducting an investigation.
“At first I assumed it was simply me, however then I went on-line and noticed that it’s occurring to so many individuals,” Curler stated. “My good friend instructed 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 vans being towed from in entrance of their houses in incidents that date again to a minimum of March and as not too long ago as New Yr’s Day. The movies all present a tow truck pulling right into a driveway or alongside a curb and quietly leaving with a automobile.
Adelanto resident Adrian Medina stated 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 stated he acquired an outpouring of messages from San Bernardino County group members sharing similar tales.
“I didn’t even know this was occurring till it occurred to me. Any individual must cease this man as a result of, from what I can see, it’s been occurring since early final yr, and it looks like it’s growing,” Medina stated.
In interviews with The Occasions, many victims of the thefts reported no updates on their missing-vehicle reviews. However Curler stated his was discovered — in items. Police known as a few 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 stated, ‘It’s been fully stripped.’ I am going have a look at it and it was simply fully destroyed,” Curler stated. “I imply, they even took the seats. Actually all the pieces was gone however the shell. I used to be heartbroken.”
San Bernardino resident April Zavala stated her automobile was stolen round midnight one evening in March by somebody in a white tow truck. She says police nonetheless haven’t given her any info on progress within the investigation into the theft.
“The one approach 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 stated. “I believe that it’s an auto theft ring.”
Authorities stated that they weren’t ruling out organized crime within the investigation.
Zavala stated she had a few of her late mom’s possessions in her automobile when it was stolen, and that’s “what harm probably the most.”
“That went with it,” Zavala stated. “I simply need the folks which are doing this caught. It takes rather a lot out of you once they take one thing that you just labored laborious 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.
