Charlotte Seeing Spike In Gas Thefts

There is a frustrating spike in a certain kind of crime in Charlotte and it’s costing drivers and small business owners a lot of money.

With unleaded gas hovering around $3.80 per gallon and diesel gas even higher, businesses said they are being hit multiple times by people they believe are siphoning gas from their tanks.

Now, some people are turning to a small iten to try to protect themselves.

At Denver Equipment Company, Lynn Abee said she could not believe it when he discovered nearly a full tank of diesel gas had been siphoned from their freight truck again.

He said thieves had also stolen fuel just over a week ago.

“It’s very frustrating,” he said.

A business owner on Albemarle Road spotted a man trying to siphon gas out of a U-Haul truck Thursday and managed to stop him.

In fact, over the past month, there have been a string of fuel thefts in Charlotte.

Nick Polyzos at Goodyear Tire said it appears in most cases, people are using a hose to siphon gas. He recommends a gas cap lock for drivers who want to protect their tanks.

“You replace your regular gas cap with one that locks what they'll do they'll go to it and itll just turn they can't get the cap off,” he said.

That’s what Abee has installed.

And even if someone does cut into the tank, Polyzos said the gas cap lock has a seal, which would mean the gas would pour out slower.