Austintown business owner has message for thieves: 'Get a damn job'
AUSTINTOWN, Ohio - An Austintown business owner didn't mince words when he said "I just wish these people would get a damn job."
James Miketa is the Owner of Ideal Store Fixtures on North Meridian Road. He tells 21 News, thieves looking for catalytic converters have hit his businesses for the second time since last fall.
The latest theft took place between Wednesday night and Thursday morning.
According to a police report, the thief or thieves got away with three catalytic converters from three vehicles.
Another business was also hit on Meridian road this week, where another three converters were stolen.
"I wish they would get a life and a job, and leave us alone," said Miketa. "With everything going on with high prices and supply chain issues, it is hard enough to try and stay in business."
He explains the area is fenced in and he says whoever is responsible went through an effort to get what they wanted.
"They're scoping it out," said Miketa. "It's not a bunch of amateurs. It's someone that definitely knows what's going on."
Detective Sergeant Greg McGlynn of the Austintown Police Department says they usually see about one converter stolen a week, but two businesses with six total converters stolen in seven days show there was more planning.
"That means they know what they're doing," McGlynn said, "It's not a random 'Let's stop here and see if there are converters.' They've already kind of scouted the place out, they know what they want."
McGlynn says oftentimes these are crews that come from as far as New York or out Cleveland and hit businesses through the state.
He said there continues to be a "black market" for converters, and illegal buyers strip away precious metals for profit.
Austintown police have suspects in mind for this week's thefts, but oftentimes he said they're hard to nail down.
"It's very frustrating because a lot of them go unsolved," he said, "A lot of them for the reason that there's no video footage to help us locate a vehicle or a suspect."
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Austintown Police Department.
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