Christmas Day Crime: Car Part Theft Plagues NE OKC Theatre

Theft is keeping Oklahoma City police busy on the Northeast Side. Thieves continue focusing their efforts on swiping car parts at the Cinemark Tinseltown Theatre.

Wednesday, December 25th 2013, 10:12 pm

By: News 9


Theft is keeping Oklahoma City police busy on the Northeast Side. Thieves continue focusing their efforts on swiping car parts at the Cinemark Tinseltown Theatre.

The movie theatre, located at 6001 N. Martin Luther King Ave., was packed with Christmas Day moviegoers late Wednesday. Just before 5 p.m., a catalytic converter and muffler were taken from Clifford Karraker's pickup truck. Police say thieves are known to scrap the parts for fast cash.

"It's on Christmas Day … it's supposed to be a happy [day]," Karraker's 11-year-old daughter Bailey said.

Bailey explained what happened after the movie.

"[My dad] started [the truck] like usual, and … all of a sudden, it sounded like a gun going off," Bailey said.

Karraker filed a report with police and alerted theatre employees to be on the lookout. Tinseltown has security cameras. However, those cameras are located in front of the theatre building, only monitoring about half of the large parking area.

Tinseltown has been a target for catalytic converter theft in the past. Police say thieves move fast and thrive in large, crowded parking lots.

"If anyone knows about it, just contact the police," Bailey said.

Insurance companies say vehicles that sit higher from the ground, such as SUVs and pickups are more vulnerable to catalytic converter theft because of easy access.

For tips on how to prevent this type of theft.

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