Vehicle thefts up sharply this year in Las Vegas Valley

Las Vegas police report a 26 percent increase in vehicle thefts this year, with thieves particularly targeting older-model Chevrolet Silverados and Tahoes, Ford F-150 pickups and Honda Civics and Accords.

The Metropolitan Police Department has typically received reports of “right around 7,000 stolen vehicles a year” in recent years, while the number of stolen vehicles reported to police in 2021 is up 26 percent compared with last year, Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo said.

Lombardo blamed the increase in part on black market demand for catalytic converters. Las Vegas Valley police departments say thieves are cutting the devices from vehicles, then selling them on the black market or at scrap yards. The converters are installed on vehicles to decrease carbon monoxide emissions, and people steal them because they contain valuable metals: rhodium and palladium.

“You can have them either crawl under the car and cut it off or you can have them steal the car and cut (them) off,” Lombardo said. “It depends on the ability for them to crawl under the car or not.”

Lombardo said many stolen vehicle thefts are preventable. Las Vegas police issued a news release Monday morning detailing the steps people can take to prevent vehicle theft. They include:

— Do not leave a vehicle running and unattended.

— Install an audible alarm, a steering column collar or a steering wheel lock.

— Consider installing an immobilization device like a kill switch.

— Consider installing a GPS tracking device to help law enforcement locate the vehicle if it is stolen. Report thefts immediately to police and provide information about the license plate number, a vehicle identification number, and the make, model and color. Also report the theft to your insurance company.

Contact Glenn Puit by email at gpuit@reviewjournal.com. Follow @GlennatRJ on Twitter.