The Orange County Sheriff’s Office is investigating an unusual theft reported at a Hillsborough towing and wreckage service shop over the weekend.

The sheriff’s office included the larceny report from Pancho’s Garage and Wrecker Service in its Daily Crime Report on Tuesday after deputies were called out the business off Old NC 10 on Saturday. An incident report filed by the shop said thieves stole two generators and eight catalytic converters from its site between when Pancho’s closed on Friday and people returned to work on Saturday.

Investigators in the case reported that the converters, which are often attached to the underside of vehicles, were already separated from vehicles when stolen. Additionally, the larceny report for the case clarifies that the generators are too heavy of a weight for one person to likely carry alone. The victim in the case reported all the items being inside the property’s building when they were stolen.

In the Daily Crime Report, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said the suspects in the case gained entry through the rear of the property. According to the victim’s incident report, a fence is listed among the damaged or stolen property items — and a sheriff’s office spokesperson confirmed that it was a fence in the rear of the property.

Catalytic converter thefts are not uncommon in Orange County, as with the rest of the country, as the vehicle part can be taken apart to harvest expensive materials inside that help reduce emissions from a vehicle’s exhaust. Additionally, catalytic converters do not have Vehicle Identification Numbers on them, which makes it challenge to trace a stolen converter back to any specific vehicle. The sheriff’s office has shared tips in the past for people to try and prevent thieves from getting under cars and stealing the part.

As of Tuesday, Orange County Sheriff’s Office had no updates in the larceny case — but the incident report indicated a DNA swab was taken at the scene off the vehicle shop’s shed door handle.

 

Photo via the Orange County Sheriff’s Office.

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