The Fate of Your Stolen Catalytic Converter Revealed

The theft of catalytic converters, which contain valuable metals, has become a billion-dollar epidemic, with stolen devices passing through middlemen, smelters, and refineries before being sold primarily to companies that make catalytic converters for automakers, as well as pharmaceutical companies, military contractors, and banks. The provenance of the stolen metal becomes opaque along the way, leaving beneficiaries with plausible deniability and little incentive to stop the thefts. Despite efforts to combat the problem, including dismantling criminal rings and introducing new laws, the thefts continue, causing financial losses and violence. The true scale of the crime is difficult to determine, but estimates suggest that about 6% of the 12 million catalytic converters recycled each year are believed to have been stolen.