Sting Operation Catches Accused Catalytic Converter Thieves In Westlake

WESTLAKE, OH — A pair of suspected catalytic converter thieves were taken into custody by Westlake police on Thursday.

Anthony Jana, 41, and Melissa Habart, 37, face charges of breaking and entering, with the possibility for addition theft charges to be added at a later date, police said. Habart is also accused of bringing heroin into a jail after police said heroin was found in her possession at the Westlake lockup.

Starting on Feb. 17, multiple catalytic converters were stolen from vehicles parked in Westlake, police said. Here's a rundown of the thefts and when they occurred.

On Feb. 17, a catalytic converter was sawed off the bottom of a company van parked on Clemens Road. Surveillance footage showed two people sneaking onto the property and then leaving in a four-door sedan with no hub caps, according to police.

On Feb. 20, a business owner on Sharon Drive discovered catalytic converters were stolen off of two of his trucks.

On Feb. 22, a different business owner on Sharon Drive called 911 to report that two of their work trucks were damaged. Some time between Feb. 17 and Feb. 21, they discovered a catalytic converter was stolen from one vehicle, and someone had attempted to cut the catalytic converter from another, damaging the vehicle.

Finally, also on Feb. 22, the owner of a business on Sperry Drive discovered someone had stolen the catalytic converter off of one of their work vans. Surveillance footage again showed a four-door sedan, with no hubcaps, near the business.

Police determined that the same car was used in all four thefts. Investigators identified the license plate on the car, but discovered the plate had been reported stolen.

However, on the evening of Feb. 22, Westlake Police initiated a sting to catch the thieves. At 11:45 p.m., a silver Chevy Cobalt with no hubcaps was seen pulling into the parking lot of a business on Clemens Road. The business was closed for the day. The license plate on the Cobalt was the same stolen plate previously identified by officers.

When investigators saw a man get out of the Cobalt and try to steal the catalytic converter off a truck, police closed in on him. The man ran back to the car, jumped in and the vehicle pulled away, only to be stopped by marked Westlake police cars.

Both Jana and Habart were inside the vehicle, police said, were taken into custody. Investigators also found a vehicle saw, suspected marijuana and suspected heroin in the vehicle.

Jana and Habart are being held at Cuyahoga County Jail. They waived their preliminary hearings at Rocky River Municipal Court and have been bonded over to the Cuyahoga County Grand Jury, police said.