District attorneys in Montgomery and Delaware counties announced charges Thursday in a long-running joint investigation into a catalytic converter fencing ring that was dealing in vehicles targeted in Philadelphia and its suburbs.
“The theft of catalytic converters from vehicles has left a trail of fear in our neighborhoods these last several years,” said Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer in a release. “By working together, law enforcement has broken up and removed this dangerous ring of thieves from our streets and hopefully restored a sense of peace with the knowledge that such lawlessness will not be tolerated.”
The release notes five men have already been arrested.
They are Daniel McIlhenney, 37, and his brother Ryan McIlhenney, 36, both of Folcroft; Terrell Gibson, 40, of Chester; Sharief Louden, 30, of Philadelphia; and Loai Nasser, 49, of Cherry Hill, N.J.
An arrest warrant has also been issued for another man, Ali Sayyam, 29, of Ocean, N.J.
“These organized theft crews were responsible for a large portion of the catalytic converter thefts in the Southeastern Pennsylvania region,” said Montgomery County District Attorney Kevin Steele in the release. “They caused significant financial hardship for vehicle owners while undermining the safety of our communities. By dismantling this theft ring, we are sending a clear message that this type of criminal activity and other organized theft rings in Montgomery and Delaware counties will be investigated and prosecuted aggressively.”
According to the release and a 61-page criminal complaint authored by Montgomery County Detective James Carbo and Delaware County Detective Brian Patterson:
Investigators became aware in June 2022 that there was a “crew” of thieves working “all over the state” to steal catalytic converters and sell them to various salvage yards, including two on 61st Street in Philadelphia: Big Head Auto Salvage, operated by the McIlhenneys, and Philly Auto Salvage, operated by Nasser and Sayyam.
The thefts were motivated by a sharp increase in the prices for precious metals during the COVID-19 pandemic. Catalytic converters became a favorite of thieves due to their ease of removal and the fact that the devices contain metals like platinum, palladium and rhodium. Rhodium at one point was selling for as much as $31,000 an ounce, though it has since dropped down to about $4,500 an ounce.
The “cutting crew” targeted vehicles parked in high-traffic areas like malls and shopping centers, business parks, the Philadelphia International Airport and Drexel University. These crews became so adept that they could jack up a vehicle, remove the catalytic converter and lower the vehicle again in less than two minutes.
Their payments for the devices ranged between $300 and $1,200, depending on the make of the vehicle.
Investigators learned that Daniel McIlhenney was aware of every stolen catalytic converter transaction that took place at Big Head and no converters were purchased without his approval.
The two target salvage yards would sell the stolen devices to various other outlets. In 2023 alone, records showed that Philly Auto Salvage sold more than $1 million worth of converters, while Big Head recorded sales of more than $300,000.
The complaint details numerous trips Daniel McIlhenney personally made to another salvage yard on Essington Avenue where he sold the converters and other items. That yard recorded those sales, but there was no paperwork at Big Head for any of those transactions.
Investigators raided both salvage yards in March, as well as Daniel McIlhenney’s home. While Big Head maintained several methods of recording sales, there was no information on the purchase of converters in any receipt books and only occasional notations in a notebook such as “cat $80” or $45 cat.”
Evidence recovered from Philly Auto Salvage showed that from January and February, 1,245 catalytic converters had been sold for a total of $100,677. Inventory records showed only 943 converters listed, however, meaning the company failed to document more than 300 converters over a two-month period. One receipt also showed Nassir received more than $143,000 for catalytic converter sales in a single day in 2023.
One victim of these thefts reported that they were quoted a repair bill of $4,200 to replace just one stolen converter.
The investigation used a wide variety of techniques including interviews, undercover sales, surveillance, call records and cellphone downloads, and involved numerous law enforcement agencies including nearly 20 individual police departments, the Pennsylvania State Police, Bucks County Detective Bureau and Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Each of the defendants has been charged in Montgomery County with 18 counts, including corrupt organizations, theft, receiving stolen property, conspiracy and related offenses.
Those in custody were arraigned before Magisterial District Judge Patrick Krouse, who set bail at $99,000 cash for Daniel McIlhenney, Ryan McIlhenney and Loai Nassar, 10% of $50,000 for Gibson and $100,000 unsecured for Louden.
All had posted bail through bondsmen Wednesday save Louden, who was already on the street.
A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Aug. 19 before Krouse. Calls to defense attorneys were not returned Thursday.
Assistant District Attorneys Christopher Taft and Gwendolyn Kull, captain of the Economic Crimes Unit, will be prosecuting.
While the McIlhenney brothers and Nasser and Sayyam were operators of the salvage yards, the roles of Gibson and Loudon were not specified. It was also unclear if the “cutting crew” also has been charged.
Source: Berkshire mont
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