Deputies: Portland man stole 26 catalytic converters from business

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A Portland man is accused of stealing 26 catalytic converters from a Toledo, Wash. business on Wednesday.

The suspect, identified as 38-year-old Jesse Vaidabid Jr., is charged with first-degree theft and second-degree burglary.

According to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office, deputies learned that Vaidabid Jr. had entered into a business and cut the catalytic converters off of 26 trucks before leaving through a fence line, carrying the converters in a garbage can.

Deputies say that a short time later, a Washington State trooper located Vaidabid Jr.’s vehicle in Cowlitz County and discovered that he was in the process of cutting a catalytic converter off another vehicle. He was then taken into custody.

All 26 catalytic converters were recovered.