NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Last year, more than 1,800 vehicles were stolen in Metro Nashville, and detectives said that number could be significantly lower if it weren't for what they call a loophole in the law.
Right now Metro Detectives are doing what they can to catch car thieves with bait cars that help police catch auto thieves in action.
"It's like fishing you just have to sit there and wait," said Detective Tony Constant.
Detectives use GPS device hidden in those cars to track the crooks all in an effort to make an arrest before they trade the car for cash at the nearest scrap yard.
For 28-year-old William Webb and his 1992 Oldsmobile, it was too late.
"There is nothing wrong with the car anyway and they sold it to a salvage place for metal. It is worth way more than they got for it," said Webb.
Webb is one of 800 people this year who have had their vehicle stolen in Nashville. Like Webb, many of those missing cars are older models made before 2001 because in Tennessee they are easier to sell and harder for detectives to track.
"I could go on this lot and pick any car I want that's more than 10 years old or older and hook it up to a wrecker and take it over there and sell it today, and all I need is an ID," said Constant.
The problem is that the current law protects the salvage yards, not the car's owner. All you have to have to sell a car that is more than 10 years old is an ID. It could be a friend's ID or even a stranger's ID, making it hard to trace the sale to who actually stole the car. Detective Constant believes proof of ownership should be required to sell any car to scrap yards, no matter the year. But so far, it's been a losing battle with the lawmakers.
"We have tried to get the law changed but lobbyists for these salvage companies are powerful. They have spent a lot of money lobbying the legislature to get these laws just like they want," said Constant.
It leaves Webb wondering if a stricter law could have prevented his car from ending up in one of the scrap yard's massive metal heap.
"If that was in place I think I would still have my vehicle," said Webb.
Just last week, two men, Marlow Ezekiel and Anthony Franklin, were caught stealing a Metro bait car.
They were arrested at the Pull-A-Part shop where police say they were trying to sell the car.
Detectives said there is almost always a bait car somewhere in Nashville.
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