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The defendants included Michael Williams, the 53-year-old owner of TDI Towing in Philadelphia, his three sons-in-law Michael Bruce, Kevin Schwartz, and Patrick Hopkins, his wife Deborah Davalos, and her sister Lisa Davalos.
Williams, of Huntingdon Valley, was sentenced to 2 ½ to 5 years in state prison, followed by two years of probation, and was ordered to pay $124,900 in restitution to 157 victims. Bruce, 32, of Sewell, N.J., received a sentence of one year less a day to two years less a day in the Bucks County Correctional Facility.
Schwartz, 34, and Hopkins, 25, both of Huntingdon Valley, were sentenced to nine months to 23 months in the county jail, while Lisa Davalos, 49, of Philadelphia, received 90 days to 23 months in county jail. Deborah Davalos, 52, of Huntingdon Valley, was sentenced to two years of probation.
The sentences stem from guilty pleas entered by Williams, Bruce, Schwartz, Hopkins, and Deborah Davalos on June 27, while Lisa Davalos entered a no-contest plea.
The theft ring, led by TDI Towing, was uncovered after a nearly yearlong investigation by Bucks County Detectives, who worked alongside three dozen local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies.
Authorities found that TDI had purchased an average of 175 catalytic converters weekly for at least three years, totaling 27,300 converters worth approximately $8.2 million. Employees paid $300 per converter, which was then sold to scrap yards for a significant profit.
The investigation, which involved the Bucks County 20th Investigating Grand Jury, revealed that the rise in catalytic converter thefts throughout Bucks County and surrounding areas coincided with the enterprise’s operations. However, since the arrests in June 2023, theft reports have plummeted, with only four incidents reported in Bensalem Township this year compared to 272 in 2022, Deputy District Attorney Edward Furman Jr. said in court.
The thieves who carried out the catalytic converter thefts, referred to as “cutters,” were previously sentenced.
The case was prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Edward Furman Jr. and Chief Deputy District Attorney Jovin Jose.
“This prosecution has brought a significant and measurable decrease in catalytic converter thefts in our community,” Furman said.
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