Portland car theft investigation: Owners tell stories of their missing cars ... - The Oregonian - OregonLive.com
Portland police say they've identified the owners of 110 cars that were stolen and then sandwiched into flats of metal at two North Portland car dismantlers, West Coast Car Crushing and A-1 Light Truck & Van Parts . Detectives found the owners... Then they would try to match the cars to 7,000 vehicles caught on police surveillance video being towed to the dismantlers from September 2013 through April. A network of tow truck drivers stole the cars from outside homes, businesses or off freeway shoulders or ramps, police said. They targeted old cars because they weighed more: the heavier the car, the more value it would have for its metal, detectives said. 14, 2013, someone stole carpet layer Daniel Speer's 1991 Ford van from Southeast 136 Avenue in Portland, parked near his home. Police video shows it being towed the next day to West Coast Car Crushing. The tools he had accumulated over his career were all in the truck, he said, estimating their worth at about $3,000. "In one night," Speer said, "it just got all wiped clean. After immediately reporting his van stolen to Portland police, Speer said he heard nothing until a Multnomah County prosecutor contacted him. Source: www.oregonlive.com
