When the Salvation Army of Greater Rochester lost the catalytic converters off of its food and box trucks on Wednesday, organizers wanted people to know that it's not just the cars that were affected, but also impacted the people the Salvation Army serves.

What You Need To Know

  • A catalytic converter is part of the exhaust system under your car that makes emissions cleaner for the air

  • Catalytic converters have precious metals inside

  • Experts say more and more thieves are taking these converters to sell them

"I wish you had a greater perspective of what you're doing,” said Jon Soza with the Salvation Army. “That's a very selfish move. You just cost a lot of people, hundreds of people, if not thousands of people to not be able to have food."

The Salvation Army said it won't be able to serve food for about two weeks waiting for the converter to be replaced on the truck. Replacing them can cost between $1,000 and $3,000. So what exactly is a catalytic converter? Scott Pundt, the owner of Kalpins Auto Care, has that answer.

"It's part of the exhaust system for emissions for all vehicles 1975 or newer for less pollution in the air,” said Pundt. "Well, they contain some precious metals that are pretty valuable. Iridium being the most expensive, platinum, and palladium. So they're being cut off vehicles, taken to scrap yards, scrap yards are then cashing those in for the precious metals internal, or reselling them to be repaired on another vehicle."

The Monroe County Sheriff's Office said it has seen a rash of catalytic converter larcenies over the last several months countywide. Pundt said the thieves tend to go after bigger vehicles with larger converters that are easier to get to.

Even though this type of theft has been going on for years, he thinks there's a deeper reason why more are being taken now.

"Based on the way things are today, the economy, a lot of people unemployed. They're desperate families out there, desperate people out there, so it's kind of surfaced a little bit stronger than it has in the past,” said Pundt. “These days it's mainly business owners whose vehicles have been sitting idle. They're being attacked to further the situation in the economy so it's a sad deal."

Pundt and the sheriff's office suggest people try to park their vehicle inside or in a well-lit area by cameras. And of course, if you see something, call 9-1-1.