PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A Philadelphia man is accused of stealing a handful of cars around the city with an unconventional and rather conspicuous tool. Police say Lamarr Miller, 44, used his tow truck to bring the vehicles to a junkyard.
Miller turned himself in after, police believe, he was behind a tow-truck theft of at least seven vehicles from all across the city.
Jason Smith, commanding officer of the Major Crimes Unit, says their investigation started in November.
“We received a stolen auto report. We subsequently received video surveillance footage from the complainant capturing the theft of that stolen auto,” Smith said.
He said that video showed a tow truck that resembled Miller’s operating in the area. The investigation led officials to Titan Auto Recycling, a junkyard in North Philly.
Smith says Miller would get anywhere from $300 to $600 for each of the cars he brought in.
Titan Auto Recycling has not been charged with any crimes, and Smith says he’s unsure if the business knew the cars were stolen.
“By state law, these vehicles that are being turned in for scrap metal are supposed to be accompanied by a title, at the least.”
Police believe he would drive around and look for cars that appeared to be abandoned.
“A lot of these vehicles, they've been parked for some time. There's debris on the vehicles. They have flat tires. They're waiting for repairs. Generally, these tow truck theft operators, they target older-model vehicles,” Smith said.
This isn’t the first time Miller is accused of doing this. Two years ago, Smith alleged Miller used the same tow truck to steal a car out of Chester.
“We think that Mr. Miller is going to be responsible for many, many more thefts than this. But thus far, he's only been charged for seven stolen autos.”
Miller made bail and is facing several charges, but investigators are still looking into whether he’s behind other vehicle thefts.
Stolen vehicles have been a focus for police, says Smith, who notes incidents of the crime are down about 44% from a year ago.