Philadelphia man accused of using tow truck to steal cars and sell them for scrap

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) -- Philadelphia police arrested a man accused of using a tow truck to steal cars parked on the street and then sell the vehicles for scrap.

Lamarr Miller, 44, of Philadelphia, turned himself in after police put out a warrant for his arrest. Police said he would cruise streets throughout the city and look for cars that looked to be abandoned.

"A lot of these vehicles, they've been parked for some time. There's debris on the vehicles, flat tires, waiting for repair," said Capt. Jason Smith with Philadelphia police's Major Crimes Unit.

Police started tracking Miller in November after the owner of one of the stolen cars contacted them with surveillance of the theft. Police said Miller used his tow truck to haul the car to Titan Auto Recycling in North Philadelphia to sell it for scrap.

After reviewing records for the business, police determined that Miller had sold at least seven stolen cars to the scrap yard for about $300-$600 apiece.

Police believe he may be behind other thefts because they said Miller is no stranger to this kind of crime.

"This is not the first time Mr. Miller has engaged in taking stolen autos with a tow truck. Ironically, he used the same tow truck for stealing a vehicle out of Chester City," said Smith.

Miller posted bail on the recent theft charges. His tow truck has been impounded.

Police said they are cracking down on the problem of stolen cars and that thefts are down about 44% compared to this time last year.