Cochrane RCMP has had an important breakthrough in the rising number of catalytic converter thefts in the Cochrane area.

A report of a break and enter in progress saw the Cochrane RCMP apprehend five suspects in possession of four stolen catalytic converters taken from RVs in a Springbank storage yard, Dec. 12.

RCMP Cpl. Troy Savinkoff says they were able to catch the five in their vehicle at the scene of the crime in the storage yard.

Savinkoff says a search of their vehicle saw four catalytic converters recovered that clearly had just been removed from recreational vehicles.

Charged were Jari Manner, 38, of Cochrane, Jan-Anne August, 29, of Calgary, Cory Davies, 44, of Calgary, Jared Hiebert, 47, of St. Albert, and Mikhail Loskutov, 28, of Calgary. Offences including theft over $5000, mischief over $5000, possession of break-in tools, and contravening an order of the Medical Officer of Health (COVID).

Manner and Loskutov appear in a Calgary court tomorrow, while Davies, Hiebert, and August were released on conditions and will make their first appearances on Jan. 19 at Cochrane Provincial Court.

The theft of catalytic converters has been on the rise across the nation, says Savinkoff, and has only become more prevalent in the Cochrane area since the summer.

"The theft of catalytic converters has been something that our crime reduction unit has been watching for a while," he says. "We do know that these types of thieves were quite active in Calgary and surrounding areas. We had been fortunate enough that in the Cochrane area we hadn't seen a whole lot of them. About mid this year, we suddenly saw the increase and we've seen it continue to rise as we got closer to the end of the year."

He says these arrests have opened the door to further investigations.

"We've identified five suspects now that are active in our area, and it's now our job that we've identified these people to follow up. It doesn't simply end with the laying of charges. We'll be following up to see what else we can come up with."

That includes seeking out other offenders and making contact with recycling companies accepting the converters.

He says the crime shouldn't be taken lightly. 

"You know, one offender can steal 10, 20, 50, 80, 100, and each one of those catalytic converters represents a victim. So the amount of problems that one criminal can cause is a great deal."

If you have any information on property crimes in your area you are asked to contact Cochrane RCMP at 403-851-8000 or your local police.

If you wish to remain anonymous, you can contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS), online at www.P3Tips.com (http://www.p3tips.com) or by using the "P. Tips" app available through the Apple App or Google Play Store.