Anne Arundel thieves less interested in catalytic converters

Police in Annapolis and Anne Arundel County says the slump in the precious metal markets has contributed to a sharp drop in reported thefts of copper wiring and catalytic converters.

County police Lt. Herbert Hasenpusch says the market price of metal is a significant motivation for the thefts. Prices for some metals have fallen more than 60 percent in the past few months.

County police handled 152 reports of catalytic converter thefts in July, but only 49 this month and only 54 in November. Catalytic converters contain small amounts of platinum and other metals, but scrap yards are paying much less for the devices than they were this summer.