Kevin Leonard, of Flamingo Motors in Williamstown, holds up an old catalytic converter that he took from a 2011 sedan and replaced with a new one. Thefts of the part are rising across the Berkshires. 

The inside of an old catalytic converter which contains precious metals like platinum, rhodium and palladium. 

The catalytic converter in Tina Bardwell's Honda Element was sawed out this summer. The car was parked in her driveway on Main Street in West Stockbridge. She spent $550 to install a shield over the part. 

Dave Dempsey, owner of Dempsey's Auto Sales in Great Barrington, has had two catalytic converters stolen off vehicles in his Stockbridge Road lot since January.

Danny Bell points to the catalytic converter on this 1985 Chevy K-10 pickup. Bell's classic car restoration business was hit by thieves last week. They stole a total of 12 converters.

Kevin Leonard, of Flamingo Motors in Williamstown, holds up an old catalytic converter that he took from a 2011 sedan and replaced with a new one.

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Heather Bellow can be reached at hbellow@berkshireeagle.com or 413-329-6871. 

Read an updated version of this story here. Thursday July 26, 2012

Heather Bellow, a member of the investigations team, joined The Eagle in 2017. She is based in the South Berkshire County bureau in Great Barrington. Her work has appeared in newspapers across the U.S.

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