Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office in Fountain Hills is reporting an uptick in vehicle collisions in the community over the past couple of months, according to Capt. Larry Kratzer, commander for MCSO’s District 7 region based in Fountain Hills. Kratzer was delivering his monthly activity report to the Town Council at its Dec. 7 regular session.

Kratzer attributes the increase to the return of winter visitors, creating more traffic on the streets.

“Fortunately, most of those incidents were non-injury and a few with minor injuries,” Kratzer reported.

There have been a couple of trending criminal activities in Fountain Hills in recent weeks and months, according to Kratzer. He noted that someone had broken into water dispenser machines at a couple of drugstores on Palisades Boulevard recently. There have also been a number of thefts of catalytic converters from vehicles parked unattended overnight.

Kratzer said the catalytic converter thefts are difficult to prevent, however they do require equipment to cut them out that makes a good deal of noise. In a couple of instances people have reported witnessing the thefts, but deputies were unable to arrive to capture the thieves.

People can report ongoing criminal activity by calling 9-1-1, using the MCSO non-emergency number XXXXX, or download the P3 app to have available to anonymously report criminal or suspicious activity (see separate story in this edition of The Times related to this program).

Kratzer said the increase in thefts of catalytic converters relates to an increase in the value of precious metals used in making the parts. The thieves sell them to scrap yards, online or for parts.

Kratzer said MCSO recommends parking in a well-lit place with regular traffic. He said some people will scratch their vehicle VIN number on the part, or there are security devices that can be attached, but those can be expensive.

Kratzer said people will know if their catalytic converter has been stolen because of the noise it makes when the engine is started. He said it is very loud, similar to running a vehicle with no muffler.

Kratzer also reported the Sheriff’s Office participated recently in the Town’s Leadership Academy with some displays and demonstrations to educate the academy participants.