Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
Thieves are after your valuables, and with the price of gas at more than $4 a gallon, some tanks could be a target.
Across the country more criminals are stealing gasoline, and they're coming up with new ways to drain your tank. A man in Sandy found that out the hard way.
Dan Hannula said, "The gas prices are a kick in the teeth, but $60 worth of gas isn't worth a $600 fuel tank."
Gasoline theft is nothing new. But if you thwart the thieves one way, they may come up with another way to rob your tank.
Hannula just moved back to Sandy last week, and it was a rude homecoming. He went out to run errands. His tank was on empty, even though he'd recently put in 15 gallons of gas.
"I thought somebody had siphoned off my tank," he said. "I went to fill up at the local gas station. I got about four gallons, and it started spraying out on my feet."
He looked under his truck.
"I spotted a half-inch diameter hole and drill marks where they had missed drilling through the tank, and found out they had drilled through the tank to siphon out the gas," he explained.
A bolt is a temporary plug.
He thinks the thieves targeted his truck because it has high clearance, a big tank, a plastic composite tank, and he lives near a major street.
Sandy police told KSL they hadn't had a gas theft quite like this one. They also pointed out it would be quite a hazard if the outpouring gas and fumes came into contact with sparks from the drill.
Gas station drive-offs and siphoning are more common methods of stealing gas. But now customers have to pre-pay or use a card at the pump. Also, many tanks are siphon-proof, or you can buy a locking gas cap. A locking cap costs about $10. That's cheaper than three gallons of gas. If you can, park in a locked garage or in a well-lit area.
Still, a determined thief is hard to stop.
Hannula said, "If you've got a high clearance vehicle and a plastic tank, you're vulnerable."
Hannula didn't want to give anyone any ideas about stealing gas, but he also thinks we should be alert to this kind of theft.
E-mail: jboal@ksl.com
