A bin full of discarded catalytic converters at AB CatTech in Burlington, WI.
A huge increase in thefts of catalytic converters has hit Milwaukee and the nation. Thieves are sliding under cars and trucks and brazenly sawing off converters by the thousands. The attraction is the valuable metals inside the converter, an anti-pollution device.
Imagine stepping outside your home and making a troubling discovery about a family car. That s what happened on a recent day to Milwaukee resident Ben Wilson. I woke up in the morning and was moving my wife s Honda Element out of the driveway. And when I turned it on, it made an incredibly loud sound, he says.