Man Accused Of Stealing Catalytic Converters Off Superior Church Vans

Apparently no one is immune from being the victim of catalytic converter theft.  A Bayfield man is in custody, facing charges that he cut the catalytic converters off of two church vans in Superior.

Marshall Edward Curran is currently in the Douglas County Jail, facing a variety of charges related to the thefts. The 34-year old is accused of cutting the catalytic converters off the vans that are owned by the Twin Ports Baptist Church.

According to the details shared in the article in the Superior Telegram [paywall], Curran is accused being held on charges including "misdemeanor counts of theft, party to theft, removal of a non-major part of a vehicle, party to removal of a non-major part of a vehicle, possession of drug paraphernalia, and four counts of felony bail jumping."

It appears that the thefts occurred over a two night period.

Police have the quick thinking of a witness at the church who used her phone to record video while the first incident happened.  That article in the telegram describes how the woman was inside the church building on March 9, "heard a grinding noise outside and saw a man coming out from under the van holding something large and rusty".

That witness recorded the actions on her cell phone and was able to show it to the police when they responded.  Meanwhile, the police looked at surveillance video from the security camera at the church.  That's when they saw that the suspect in question left "in a light colored Cadillac with a moon roof".

On March 13, the Superior Police responded back to the church on a call that "two individuals [were] using flashlights to look at the church van".  The men were gone by the time the police arrived, but they did find "tire treads and show impressions near the van, as well as metal shavings under the vehicle".  An investigation discovered that the "vehicle had two catalytic converters" and they were both gone.

The next day, a Superior Police officer noticed a vehicle that matched the description of the suspects parked at a convenience store in East End.  Upon talking to the two individuals in the car,  they also noticed that one (Curran) had on "the same footwear the suspect was wearing in the surveillance video".

A resulting search warrant allowed the police to look through the vehicle.  They discovered three catalytic converters, a "Sawzall that had been modified to cut more easily at odd angles", other power tools, and a "small black pipe [the suspect] called a 'weed pipe'".

Curran waived his preliminary hearing, and is still in the Douglas County Jail. A cash bail of $4,000 has been set and he is also not to have any contact with the Twin Ports Baptist Church.

During their investigation, the police also discovered that Curran had been living in the vehicle he was driving.  They also determined that he "had been released on bail in two Bayfield County cases, both involving felonies, at the time of the thefts.  A bench warrant had been issued" on Curran.

The next court appearance for Curran will be April 21.