White Settlement police catch catalytic converter thief in the act

WHITE SETTLEMENT, Texas - White Settlement police catch catalytic converter thief in the act 

Police in the Fort Worth suburb of White Settlement arrested a man for trying to steal a catalytic converter.

They essentially caught him in the act after an officer heard a drilling noise at 4 a.m. Wednesday coming from a nearby neighborhood.

That officer went to investigate and saw a man under a white Kia van.

After the suspect took off, the officer followed on foot.

Dash cam from another officer arriving on scene shows the foot chase.

They were able to catch up to the guy who was hiding on someone's back porch completely out of breath.

"I'm really thankful again that the officer was listening and heard this sound and that he made the decision, ‘I want to investigate this and see if there's more to this,’" said White Settlement Police Chief Chris Cook.

Police found tools used to steal a catalytic converter near the van.

They arrested Juan Manuel Aguilar for several charges including theft, evading arrest and some outstanding warrants.