Was 'shaved key' used in theft of car woman saved a year to buy?


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MAGNA — A woman was hoping Monday somebody might spot the car she saved for a year to buy, as police warned others about a theft tool that is effectively used to steal many older-model, foreign-made vehicles.

Esther Sotelo said she looked out the window of her apartment near 8700 W. April Road Saturday morning and couldn’t believe what she saw — an empty parking stall beneath the carport where her black 1999 Honda Civic had been parked the night before.

“I was in shock, believe me,” Sotelo said, who moved to Magna from Knoxville, Tennesse a year-and-a-half ago. “I’ve lived in the projects before in Tennessee. Never had nobody mess with my car!”

Sotelo said the car’s doors had been locked and her key and her daughter’s key were both still in their possession.

No broken glass was found, she said.

“It takes somebody with a lot of guts and who is just in a bad place in their life to do something like that,” the woman’s daughter, Angela Sotelo, said.

Why this car?

While the family was perplexed over what someone’s motive would be to steal the car, Unified Police Lt. Brian Lohrke said older-model Japanese-made automobiles are popular because of their interchangeable parts.

“It’s very possible for that thief to go scrap that car for parts and get almost three times the value of the car itself,” Lohrke said.

Research in 2015 from the National Insurance Crime Bureau found the 1997 Honda Accord and the 1998 Honda Civic to be the most stolen cars in Utah.

“If you look back on the studies done, let’s say over the last 20 years, it’s always been either the Honda Accord or Honda Civic — one and two.”

While it remained unclear Monday what the thief used to open and start the car, Lohrke said it was relatively common for thieves to use a “shaved key” in these types of cases, and he acknowledged it was possible in this case because of the circumstances.

“We see it quite a bit with those Honda cars,” Lohrke said. “(The shaved key) has had its edges ground down to where it’s inserted into the ignition and the ignition thinks that it’s the action key.”

Lohrke said all owners of these older-model cars should consider extra anti-theft measures, including locks on steering wheels and kill switches.

Sotelo Aftermath

Regardless of how the car was stolen, Sotelo was still facing the same prospects of life without a car.

“It took me over a year to save up for it,” said the 61-year-old, who lives on Social Security disability.

Angela Sotelo said prior to her mother buying the car in November, the family would drive her when she needed to travel distances.

“With her limited income, it’s really hard,” Angela Sotelo said. “She’s barely making ends meet.”

The family was hoping the thief would somehow decide to return the car, but acknowledged they weren’t sure what they would do if that did not happen.

“Usually I had to walk,” Esther Sotelo said. “And it got too cold. I’m just a little bit too old for that.”

The car's Utah license plate number is W363MH. Anybody with information about the car is asked to call Unified police at 801-743-7000.

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