Baldt

ROSS TWP, Allegheny County — The Mars man who was arrested Thursday in connection with a rash of catalytic converter thefts throughout the North Hills also is suspected of numerous thefts in Butler County.

Taylor Baldt, 27, is charged with a felony count of theft by unlawful taking and two felony counts of receiving stolen property.

Detective Brian Kohlhepp of the Ross Police Department said police consider Baldt a suspect connected to 30 to 50 thefts in North Hills. Baldt also admitted to stealing “a bunch of converters in Butler County,” according to Kohlhepp.

Baldt was arraigned and placed in Allegheny County Jail on $3,000 bail.

Kohlhepp said Baldt acted alone, allegedly using a portable battery-powered saw to steal the converters, which he then sold for $50 to $75 apiece to different scrap dealers.

Police said his motive was drug related.

Police said the investigation is ongoing and involves numerous jurisdictions.

Baldt was arrested after Ohio Township Police alerted other communities to reported thefts Thursday involving a white Ford F150 pickup truck.

That same vehicle had been considered as a suspect vehicle in previous investigations of thefts in Ross Township, police said.

A Ross police officer was patrolling the area of the park and ride on Perrysville Avenue when he saw that pickup leave the parking lot. The truck was stopped, and Baldt was arrested.

Police believe the suspect stole two more catalytic converters in the park and ride lot just before being stopped.

There have been a string of catalytic converter thefts in Butler City area this month. It is not known if Baldt is a suspect in any of those.

No arrests or charges have been reported for thefts in Butler County.

A catalytic converter is an important part of the exhaust system that is found in front of the vehicle’s muffler. It reduces the amount of toxic chemicals released from the engine.

But it doesn’t take much to steal one, police and mechanics say.

Depending on the make of the vehicle, a catalytic converter can be removed in less than two minutes with only a wrench or a saw.

Replacing a stolen catalytic converter isn’t cheap A new one costs $500 to $1,200 and the repair costs, including labor, could end up as high as $3,000.