The LoJack silent homing signals were picked up by a San Diego Police ground unit on the LoJack Police Tracking Computer (PTC) installed in the patrol car.  Within 30 minutes after the activation, the Classic Ford Mustang was tracked and found parked in a city street in the city of San Diego.  The officer tracking the Classic Ford mustang arrested the suspect who was sitting in the driver’s seat with the keys to the vehicle in his pocket.  The suspect was arrested for possession of a stolen vehicle and auto theft investigators will handle the investigation for further follow up and other charges.

This Classic 1968 Ford Mustang had been installed with LoJack 2-years ago in Los Angeles, California. The current owner was happy that the Mustang had LoJack and had been recovered undamaged.

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According to a recent Hot Wheels Classics Report conducted by NICB, more than 411,000 Mustangs have been reported stolen over the last 20 years. Don’t let your Mustang become the next!  To protect yours in the event that it is targeted by professional thieves, get LoJack for Classics, a stolen vehicle recovery system specifically designed for Mustangs and other collector cars.

To celebrate this fast recovery and to protect Mustang owners, LoJack is offering a special LoJack for Classics discount to our blog readers.  For $295 ($400 off the general retail price), you can purchase the only recovery system that directly works with the police.  This limited-time offer lasts through June 30th, 2012, so act now!

When ordering, simply mention the promotional code Save400. (Offer only valid on vehicles manufactured in 1987 or earlier.)

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Police: Carjacking Suspect Tried to First Steal Computers from School

Suspect stole woman’s van, dragged her alongside of it during escape

Police officers from multiple agencies arrested a Tarrant County man Monday night, hours after he allegedly stole a woman’s car and dragged her alongside of it during his escape.

Officers from both the Arlington and Pantego Police departments arrested Benjamin Rowell, 32, and charged him in connection with the carjacking of Nina Cherry outside of the Pantego Christian Academy.

Prior to the carjacking, Rowell was discovered trying to steal computer equipment from inside of the private school, according to Pantego police Sgt. Barry Reeves.

In an attempt to escape, Rowell reportedly ran outside and encountered Cherry – a mother of two Pantego Academy sophomores – who was parked outside of the school in her van, Reeves said.

Rowell stole the van from Cherry, who was then hung up in one of her van’s tires as it drove off, Reeves said.  The van then ran Cherry over as she became dislodged from the wheel well.

According to police, Cherry’s van was equipped with a tracking device (LoJack) which led officers to Rowell later Monday evening.  During his attempt to elude the officers who were pursuing, Rowell caused a few hit-and-run crashes with other drivers, according to Tiara Richard of the Arlington Police Department.

Rowell is facing multiple charges from the Arlington police, including burglary of a habitation, unauthorized use of a motor vehicle, evading arrest/detention of a vehicle, resisting arrest and multiple traffic violations, according to Richard.

Rowell has also been charged by Pantego police for the alleged carjacking.  Rowell’s bond has been set at more than $500,000.

The mother of two was taken to John Peter Smith Hospital in Fort Worth where she underwent surgery, according to Jay Pritcher, headmaster of the Pantego Christian Academy. Cherry will have surgery to repair a fractured pelvis on Thursday.

Cherry is in serious, but stable condition and will need six to eight months to recover from her injuries.

Pritcher told NBC 5 Cherry is expected to recover.

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On 5-9-12, within nineteen minutes of the LoJack system activating, an Officer from the California Highway Patrol picked up the signal from the victim’s stolen 2005 Caterpillar Skip Loader. The officer and back-up units tracked the signal to a shipping warehouse in the city of Carson. Their investigation found the vehicle had been brought to the location by a flatbed tow truck. The victim’s company names had been removed from the Skip Loader. The Skip Loader was to be shipped out of the US. The shipper provided the Officer with a list of other equipment that the person had shipped through his company. Three pieces of construction equipment were found to be stolen. The case is being handled by the CHP ISU Investigators.

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The responding officer completed a vehicle theft report and had all of the Ford’s information entered into the state and federal police computer systems. This routine action automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed in the Ford pickup.

Less than  one hour later, officers from the Texas Department of Public Safety, Harris County Precinct Six Constables, and the Houston Police Department received the Ford’s silent homing signal on the LoJack Police Tracking Computers (PTC) installed in their patrol cars. Following the directional and signal strength information provided by the PTC, the officers located the pickup traveling on a public roadway. They performed a felony stop on the pickup, arrested the driver and a passenger, and charged both with felony theft and criminal trespassing.

The dealership and owner of the Ford were extremely excited and happy for the quick return of the pickup, enabled by LoJack.

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Within minutes of activation, an off-duty Miami-Dade Police Department officer received the silent LoJack signal from the stolen Suzuki’s LoJack unit. The officer was driving on the Florida Turnpike when he received the signal and contacted his dispatcher to alert officers in the Kendall District to be on the lookout for the vehicle. Within minutes, officers were in the area, tracking the stolen motorcycle by following the directional and signal strength on their patrol cars’ LoJack Police Tracking Computers.

A Miami-Dade Police Department’s aviation unit responded to the scene and observed a subject working on motorcycles in the rear of a house in the 11400 block of S.W. 57th Terrace. Soon the subject got into his car and drove away. The officers en route to the scene performed a felony traffic stop on the vehicle and brought the subject back to his house. The subject gave the officers permission to search the premises, whereupon the officers discovered two stolen motorcycles, miscellaneous motorcycle parts and tools. The suspect was arrested for two counts of Grand Theft Auto and operation a “Chop Shop”. The motorcycle was recovered, towed to the police impound yard for safekeeping, and removed from the police crime computer systems.

The LoJack Vehicle Recovery System was installed in this Suzuki GSX1300 Hayabusa motorcycle on April 5, 2006, and has been protecting it ever since.

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The responding officer prepared a stolen vehicle report and had the Chevrolet’s information entered into the state and federal crime computer systems – a routine police action that automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed in the pickup truck.

Forty-five minutes later, officers with the Austin Police Department picked up the Chevrolet’s silent LoJack homing signal on the LoJack Police Tracking Computer installed in their vehicle. Following the directional and signal strength cues on the computer, the officers tracked the stolen pickup to an apartment complex in the 5900 block of East Stassney Lane.  In the parking lot, officers found this stolen pickup as well as five other stolen pickups, including:

– 2005 Chevrolet pickup, stolen out of Austin

– 2004 Chevrolet pickup, stolen out of Austin

– 2001 Chevrolet pickup, stolen out of Austin

– 2003 Chevrolet pickup, stolen out of Austin

– 2004 Chevrolet pickup, stolen out of Hays County

Detectives have determined that this apartment complex was a staging area for the thieves, and that all six stolen Chevrolet pickups were about to be moved to Mexico.  This remains an ongoing investigation, and suspects have been identified.

Note: Portions of this story were obtained from the Austin Police and Round Rock Police Department

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The Georgia State Capitol Police completed a stolen vehicle report and had the Civic’s information entered into the state and federal crime computers. This routine police action automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed within the Honda.

A short while later, a Dekalb County Police helicopter, equipped with a LoJack Police Tracking Computer, began picking up the Civic’s silent LoJack homing signal. The flight officers followed the directional and signal strength cues on the tracking computer and quickly located the Honda at a gas station, where the suspects had stopped for gas. The air unit, along with Georgia State Patrol vehicles, observed the suspects ready to pull out of the station; when the suspects saw law enforcement closing in, they jumped from the vehicle and fled on foot. After a brief chase, all three suspects were apprehended, arrested and charged with the theft of the woman’s Civic.

The retired school teacher was thrilled that her vehicle was recovered in good condition, and that she was not harmed in any way during the theft.

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Gardena officers completed a stolen vehicle report and had the Nissan’s information entered into the state and federal crime computers – a routine police action that automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed within the vehicle.

Minutes later, an officer with the Hawthorne Police Department picked up the Nissan’s LoJack signal on his patrol vehicle’s LoJack Police Tracking Computer. The officer notified the Garden Police Department when he entered the city limits, and the Gardena officers assumed the tracking of the Nissan. When the requested back-up units were in place, the Gardena officers attempted a high-risk traffic stop on the Nissan, but the suspect quickly sped away. The suspect abruptly stopped his vehicle and fled on foot. The officers established a perimeter around the area, and after a thorough search, a K-9 unit eventually found the suspect hiding in an old vehicle in a backyard. The suspect was taken into custody and was arrested for Grand Theft Auto.

Investigation revealed that the victim had left her car keys with her boyfriend, and the keys and vehicle were stolen during a burglary in his home. The Gardena Police detectives are conducting the follow-up investigation.

Note: Portions of this story were obtained from Hawthorne Police Department

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Dallas Police Officers picked up the silent LoJack homing signal on the LoJack Police Tracking Computer installed in their vehicle.   This allowed them to track this stolen BMW to an apartment complex parking lot, where they found it parked.  The suspects had removed the license plates and replaced them with a paper dealer tag.  This vehicle is valued at $100,000.00. This is an ongoing investigation.

Note: Portions of this story were obtained from the Frisco and and Dallas Police Department

In our second story,  the owners reported their vehicle stolen to law enforcement, the vehicle information was entered into the statewide stolen vehicle system (SVS/NCIC) computer. This routine police action automatically activated the LoJack transponder concealed in the vehicle.

On 4-23-12, LAPD Air-3 picked up the LoJack signal from the victim’s stolen 2009 Nissan Cube black in color. Air-3 vectored in Southeast ground units to the vehicle’s location. The units observed the vehicle being driven by one female suspect with a male passenger. They also observed the vehicle to have been freshly painted silver and the license plates attached belonged to a 2005 Chevrolet.

When requested back-up units arrived, they conducted a high risk traffic stop taking the two suspects into custody. The officers’ investigation found the female suspect knew the victim, somehow got a spare set of keys made and stole her vehicle. The suspect then painted the vehicle and switched license plates to conceal the identity of the vehicle.

The suspect was also in possession of several of the victim’s credit cards and identification which had been left inside the stolen vehicle. The suspect had been using the cards to charge items. The female suspect was arrested for Grand Theft Auto. The passenger suspect was questioned and released. Southeast Detectives are conducting the follow-up investigation.

Note: Portions of this story were obtained from the LASD Carson Station and LAPD Southeast Division (Air-3 assist)

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Incident:   Stolen Vehicle with Arrest

Location:   Camino Real Park

Vehicle:   2008 Dodge Avenger

Date/Time Occurred: April 24, 2012, 5:48 p.m.

Narrative:

On April 24, 2012 the victim reported his 2008 Dodge Avenger as stolen to the Port Hueneme Police Department. The vehicle, was equipped with a Lojack transmitter, and was entered into the LoJack database at 5:37 p.m.

At approximately 5:48 p.m., a VPD Patrol Officer was in the area of Ralston St. and Gaviota St., driving a patrol car equipped with a LoJack tracking device. The device received a signal indicating a stolen vehicle was in the area and a description of the vehicle was immediately broadcasted to VPD Patrol Officers.

Officers tracked the signal to Camino Real Park and located the vehicle on the east side of the park. The suspect was observed near the vehicle and was immediately contacted and detained.   Investigating Officers were able to establish the suspect had possessed the stolen vehicle and he was arrested and booked at VCJ for auto theft and a parole violation.

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