One Family Made $38 Million Off Of Stolen Catalytic Converters

A catalytic converter that has not yet been stolen

We’ve known for a while that catalytic converter theft was a big problem. In fact, it was enough of a problem that Toyota decided to offer a catalytic converter shield with the new Prius. If you’re still struggling to understand how profitable it is for thieves, it will probably help put things in perspective when you hear that a family in Sacramento, California just pleaded guilty to a $38 million catalytic converter theft conspiracy.

The Eastern District of California announced today that brothers Tou Sue Vang and Andrew Vang, along with their mother Monica Moua have pleaded guilty to to charges that they conspired to ship stolen catalytic converters to New Jersey from their home in California. Tou Sue Vang also pleaded guilty to 39 charges related to money laundering. Which makes sense because they reportedly made $38 million from this little endeavor, and that’s not the kind of money you can easily pass off as regular income.

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