NCJ Number
75668
Journal
Law Enforcement Volume: 8 Issue: 1 Dated: (February 1981) Pages: 10-12,14
Date Published
1981
Length
4 pages
Annotation
The motor vehicle theft problem and legislation proposed to remedy the problem are analyzed.
Abstract
According to Senator Charles Percy, auto theft became a problem in the seventies when the U.S. Department of Justice shifted its major emphasis to white-collar crime and local governments were unable to find funds to increase the size of auto theft squads. A large portion of the annual $4 billion in costs for motor vehicles thefts is passed on to the consumer in the form of higher insurance costs. The number of stolen vehicles recovered has dropped dramatically because professional thieves have had no difficulty in disposing of stolen vehicles to chop shops. Such illegal businesses dismantle vehicles into separate parts which bear no identification numbers. The parts can easily be sold to salvage yards and repair shops because the stolen parts are cheaper than standard replacement parts; there is no waiting period for stolen parts; and labor costs are generally lower for stolen parts, which usually require less assembly. Only the chop shops and repair shops benefit, not the consumer. Identifying replacement parts is virtually impossible under normal circumstances, and professional thieves frequently even replace stolen Vehicle Identification Numbers with numbers from wrecked vehicles. Predictably, organized crime has become involved in chop shop operations because of the high profits and low risks. The Motor Vehicle Theft Prevention Act proposed by Senator Percy would require VIN's on major auto component parts. Furthermore, the act would make it a Federal offense to possess knowingly a part with an altered or obliterated VIN. The Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations statute would be expanded to cover professional motor vehicle theft, making it possible for Federal authorities to seize assets of businesses which traffic in stolen vehicles. Major automobile manufacturers have testified that the act would add little to the cost of new cars. The only impediment to the bill's passage has been Congress's reluctance to pass any legislation regulating the auto industry.