The commodity many Americans believe is the fundamental reason we're at war in the Mideast has become so valuable here at home that thieves are risking their lives to get it.
Auto repair shops are reporting a new kind of fix-it job in recent weeks - replacing gas tanks in vehicles because miscreants drill into the tanks and steal the fuel.
Repair shops haven't seen this form of crime wave since the early 1970s, when the embargo by oil-producing nations in the Middle East caused the first real spike in U.S. gas prices.
Pickups and SUVs are more vulnerable to the gas-tank drillers, because they generally sit higher off the ground, making their tanks easier targets. But passenger cars, especially those with higher-capacity tanks, are subject to drilling.
Drilling has become the preferred method for fuel thieves because most vehicles have “check balls” in the tank filler line, to prevent spillage, and which also prevents siphoning out gas the old-fashioned way.
But as with most fads, there is a downside, which may provide more fodder for one of those “America's Dumbest Criminals” TV reality shows. The heat, friction and potential for sparks from using a cordless power drill to get into the gas tank exponentially increases the risk of an explosion and fire.
Sort of like a crime that has its own punishment built in.
June 9, 2008
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