Photo: Loraine Treadwell on Facebook
Dating back to 1996, OnStar is standard on every car, utility vehicle, and pickup truck that General Motors sells today. Previously offered in Opel and Vauxhall products as well, the system also features Theft Alert.
A part of the Stolen Vehicle Assistance suite, Theft Alarm Notification is what prompted a woman to get her car back after “the world’s dumbest Corvette thief” stole it from her garage. Loraine Treadwell of San Ramon says that she got an alert sent to her phone on Sunday morning, informing her that her Corvette may have been stolen. It was, and the garage was also damaged.
Another alert was sent “after almost 72 hours,” and the OnStar system has promptly ignition locked the car at the owner’s request. “The Z06 was in Alameda County so the location was sent to the Alameda Sheriff's Deptartment.” A 20-person task force showed up at the property where the car and suspect were hiding, “a well-known car thief in the area.”
A joint operation by the Alameda County Sheriff’s Department, San Ramon Police Department, and the ACRATT stolen vehicle recovery task force, the operation didn’t go as planned because the suspect stole a truck to escape. To make matters worse, the SD card for the Performance Data Recorder was removed from the C7 Corvette Z06 to eliminate video evidence.
The silver linings, however, are that the cops know the thief and that the car has insurance to cover the damage. The suspect had broken the windows, punched holes in the body panels, messed with the electronics, and cut off the e-brake, damage that doesn’t translate to writing the car off.
Currently at Loraine’s nearest dealership, the C7 Corvette Z06 “should be back on the road in a month or so.” OnStar Theft Alarm Notification is what saved the day thanks to locating the vehicle and denying the thief the possibility to start the car even though he tried to reprogram the key.
Theft Alert can also be programmed to notify by email or phone call, and upon alerting the owner, it’s at his or her discretion to notify the police.
Another alert was sent “after almost 72 hours,” and the OnStar system has promptly ignition locked the car at the owner’s request. “The Z06 was in Alameda County so the location was sent to the Alameda Sheriff's Deptartment.” A 20-person task force showed up at the property where the car and suspect were hiding, “a well-known car thief in the area.”
A joint operation by the Alameda County Sheriff’s Department, San Ramon Police Department, and the ACRATT stolen vehicle recovery task force, the operation didn’t go as planned because the suspect stole a truck to escape. To make matters worse, the SD card for the Performance Data Recorder was removed from the C7 Corvette Z06 to eliminate video evidence.
The silver linings, however, are that the cops know the thief and that the car has insurance to cover the damage. The suspect had broken the windows, punched holes in the body panels, messed with the electronics, and cut off the e-brake, damage that doesn’t translate to writing the car off.
Currently at Loraine’s nearest dealership, the C7 Corvette Z06 “should be back on the road in a month or so.” OnStar Theft Alarm Notification is what saved the day thanks to locating the vehicle and denying the thief the possibility to start the car even though he tried to reprogram the key.
Theft Alert can also be programmed to notify by email or phone call, and upon alerting the owner, it’s at his or her discretion to notify the police.
Google News