Theft recovery of over $210,000 in equipment
Boomerang Tracking recently recovered a stolen 2007 John Deere 7220 which led local police authorities to the additional discovery of a stolen 2006 CASE MX 305 – a total recovery estimated at over $210,000 in value.
The Boomerang Tracking Team located the stolen John Deere inside a steel barn approximately 90 km from where it had been initially reported stolen. Local law enforcement were immediately advised and arrived shortly afterwards with a search warrant for the premises.
Boomerang Tracking recently commissioned a survey on equipment theft to demonstrate how pervasive and expensive the issue is for businesses in the construction industry. “While most business owners might turn a blind eye and think that theft happens to ‘everyone else’, construction equipment theft is not rare,” commented Scott Nilson, General Manager of Boomerang Tracking. “Almost half of respondents – 46 percent – reported that they have experienced a theft on their job site. Even more concerning is that a third – 31 percent – have experienced theft more than once, and that 63 percent of stolen equipment was never seen again.”
According to the survey, only eight percent of equipment owners have security alarms on all vehicles and a mere six percent have a silent tracking device hidden in the equipment.
“That’s the bad news. The good news is that there are things you can do to keep your equipment safe. For example, keeping better records of your equipment, stepping up on-site security and using theft protection devices can make your equipment much less vulnerable to thieves,” concluded Nilson.
To educate the population about heavy equipment theft and highlight the layered approach to equipment protection, Boomerang Tracking/LoJack has published the Keeping Track – Construction Edition booklet, a guide to protect construction equipment from theft. An electronic version is available at www.BoomerangTracking.com/knowledge.
To date, the Boomerang Tracking devices have aided in the recovery of over 6,800 vehicles and other assets with an approximate value of over $339 million, including incidentals.
