A man suspected of trying to steal a catalytic converter was fatally stabbed in South El Monte, according to authorities.
Investigators with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department said the dead man was found in the driveway of a home at around 2:45 a.m. in the 11200 block of Thienes Avenue. He was stabbed by a resident of house, authorities said.
“While [the resident] was sleeping, he heard several people in the driveway,” Lt. Michael Gomez of the LASD said. “It sounded like [suspects] were trying to steal possibly his catalytic converter, at which point he came out of the house and confronted the suspect.”
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Gomez said deputies found mechanical tools, such as a hack saw, that suggest an attempted catalytic theft was underway in the driveway. The dead man, described to be a man between 35 and 45 years old, was underneath the vehicle at the time, according to Gomez.
Investigators planned to interview the resident, who used a kitchen knife to stab the man.
The LASD investigator added the deceased man was with two to three other accomplices during the attempted theft. They were last seen fleeing the scene, heading eastbound on Thienes Avenue in an older Honda Accord model.
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Deputies are canvassing the home and the neighborhood to see if there were any security videos that captured the incident.
According to the National Insurance Crime Bureau, catalytic converter thefts jumped 1215% between 2019 and 2021. State Farm, the state’s largest auto insurer, says in 2021 it paid out $62 million in claims for converter thefts. And the company says this year is looking worse.
Late last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation that increases penalties for catalytic converter thefts and make it more difficult to buy the part from anyone other than the vehicle owner or a licensed dealer.
