Toyota Corolla Stolen from Residence in New Bedford — Recovered, Undamaged, 2 Hours Later
- March 14, 2012
- recovery stories
The owner of a 2006 Toyota Corolla last saw her vehicle when it was parked outside her residence in New Bedford, Massachusetts, on the evening of January 31, 2012. When the victim returned to her vehicle the following morning, she discovered it was missing and immediately reported the theft to the New Bedford Police Department. The responding officer prepared a stolen vehicle report and relayed the information to the department’s computer operator, who entered the stolen Corolla’s information into the state and federal crime computer databases. This routine entry automatically activated the hidden LoJack transponder in the stolen Corolla, causing it to begin emitting a silent homing signal.
Less than two hours later, officers from the New Bedford Police Department and members of the MASP-GATSF began picking up the silent LoJack signal on Police Tracking Computers installed in their police vehicles. One of the troopers received a very strong signal in the area of Route 195, and by utilizing the computer’s prompts, was able to quickly locate the unoccupied and undamaged stolen vehicle, parked on Sawyer Street in New Bedford. The officer had the vehicle towed from the scene for safekeeping and pending notification of the victim.
The LoJack Vehicle Recovery System was installed in the Toyota Corolla at the owner’s request, on March 8, 2006.