Vandal(s) tried to siphon fuel from the gas tank of a pickup truck, but also disconnected the fuel line and ended up causing approximately $8,800 in damage, police say.
Juneau Police Department spokesman Sgt. Chris Burke said the owner of the white 2009 Ford F-350 reported the vandalism to police on Tuesday after getting his vehicle evaluated at an auto repair shop.
The 61-year-old man reported that other issues arose as a result of the disconnected fuel line, which is a rubber hose or tube that transfers fuel to the engine.
Burke said in a phone interview that if debris, water or another substance entered the fuel line, it could have potentially damaged the engine, which could be worth that amount in damages.
Burke said he did not know where the incident took place, but that the case is still under investigation. It was unknown if the suspect(s) were successful in siphoning the fuel.
• Contact reporter Emily Russo Miller at 523-2263 or at emily.miller@juneauempire.com.
Comments (24)
Add commentWow!
$8800 for a fuel line? What's the name of the mechanic shop? I plan to go there for an estimate on my next insurance claim.
More brain dead Obamabots
More brain dead Obamabots doing do-it-yourself wealth redistribution.
After all, if somebody has a bit more than you, TAKE IT !
I agree with both the posts above
It states that it was unknown if the thieves were succesful in siphoning the fuel.
So, how did the person know that someone tried to, much less that they disconnected the fuel line.
Thieves and possible liars who want thier name in the paper and/or to file a bogus insurance claim.
Both are thieves on different sides of the equation.
Maybe ,,,,,
and the cops bought the story. Were the Police and the Empire having a slow news day and looking for something to put in the paper and on the stats sheet?
The trucker....
Must be a lawyer!
Who is the bigger thief???
Who is the bigger thief???
For my and for the public's sake, I would like to know what repair shop estimated $8800.00?
I fear dishonest mechanics far more than I fear poor people that are cold.
If or when the "perps" are caught, I hope they are not charged with doing over $8800.00 in damage. While it is without doubt a crime to steal, It would be more of a crime to imprison someone unjustly for profit.
I think the bigger crime here is insurance fraud and it has probably been going on a long time.
Those new Fords...
...must have made fuel filters an optional item only available on the premium trim line.
It doesnt take much. Cars
It doesnt take much. Cars are designed to be expensive to repair. Could be that they damages a lot underneath. I know my fuel lines are not exactly easy to get at... Besides, if some a-hole who breaks my truck is gonna have to pay restitution, I'm gonna get gold plated fuel lines. And no, it wasnt my truck. If it were, they would be busy identifying the body.
if debris, water or another
if debris, water or another substance entered the fuel line, it could have potentially damaged the engine, which could be worth that amount in damages.
Key words......could, and potentially.
I dont think the insurance company is going to cough up 8800 bucks.
Obama Whiners
You lost. Get over it and move on.
I think there has to be a mistake in this article
Maybe $880 in damage?
Look for the connection
The guy that owns the truck has got to be either friends or family with the mechanic and they'll have plans on dividing the insurance payout between themselves.
Now those top public officials wanting to give Big Oil an extra $1 Billion per year- are oil industry insiders on temporary leave from their Big Oil positions - just long enough to steal the money from Alaska (that means you & me) and then return to their Big Oil jobs.
Here you got some small time thieves and some big time thieves. If they ever catch the actual gas thief, he'll get serious prison time. But these white collar criminals will never be brought to justice nor do any prison time.
Potential damage
Its $8800 if debris got into the engine and damaged the rings and cylinder walls. This would be about right with parts and labor. Many are so quick to shout out and say they've been ripped off without a little thought and research. Same thing on the oil debate. The King has really stirred up the masses with his speechs on the evil "They". Too bad he can't come up with a budget. But hey, he has plenty of time to hang out with Beyonce, JayZ, and golf with Tiger. Its good to be King!
going political, really?
branklin, you seriously want to spark a political discussion that Obama supporters are responsible? You're a moron. The culprits probably didn't vote, and even if they did, the odds are far greater that they voted for Romney from the simple fact that they reside here.
I think its just a poorly
I think its just a poorly written and researched article. $8800 is about right if you get contaminated fuel because in these sealed systems you could easily end up having to rebuild the engine. I think the article should have said "vandals trying to steal fuel could have caused up to $8800 in damages by potentially allowing contaminates into a disconnected fuel line".
Otherwise, its a rubber fuel line and a couple hundred bucks.
How can you not notice...
...a disconnected fuel line? Gas everywhere. You'ld smell it before you got to the truck. And it's not gonna get far enough to suck a lot of gunk into the engine because it will run out of gas. THE FUEL LINE IS DISCONNECTED! All I can see being damaged would be the fuel filter would clog up and have to be changed. $20 dollar fix. That mechanic saw him coming. Or viseversa. Check the odometer.
Funny Sad
While they've got you bent over the barrel, doing the dirty on you and stealing your wallet, you're busy worrying about gas hoses and awter pelts.
WAKE UP! YOU'RE BEING SCREWED! PAY ATTENTION!!
Fuel filler hose
I bet the fuel fill hose was cut and not the gas line. You can't siphon from the supply or return hose and they won't free flow. He most likely cut the fuel fill hose and inserted the siphon to by-pass the locked cap/door.
I doubt the thief used a dirty hose or it would of contaminated the fuel he/she/they were stealing and I don't think they brought dirt to put in the tank. Even if they used dirty hose and contaminated the fuel tank, the filters would catch it; thats why they are there, to filter.
I hope the insurance man is catching all this.
We always are, Lat.
It's a fact of life. Does being fully aware of one screwing lessen the indignity of another one? I suggest a kiss and a reach around.
Sounds reasonable hank.
Newer vehicles are pretty difficult to siphon through the filler. Especially with locking gas caps. Of course, we don't have that information in this article. Still, fuel filters are easy and cheap. So maybe a tank and fuel line flush and possibly an in-tank fuel pump would run up the bill. But, nowhere close to $8800. Surely the man hadn't by-passed the fuel filter. That would put the engine damages on him. But, you never know!
Keep in mind these are Juneau
Keep in mind these are Juneau Thugs, not nascar pit crews. They might have taken a crow bar, pried the hood off, removed the engine, then cut the fuel line...
How do we know...
...a sea "awter" didn't "slawter" the gas hose? Porcupines chew the crap out of belts and hoses. They're both rats. I know one mechanic that saved his employer (whose name I will not mention) thousands of dollars with a .44 magnum.
complete fabrication
on how dirt and debris could enter the combustion chamber. A 2009 Ford is either a gas engine with fuel injection or a diesel engine with fuel injection. Either engine would have to allow the debris to pass through through the injectors. Neither engine (gas or diesel) would allow debris to enter the combustion chamber and damage the valve, rings, piston or cylinder walls.
I defy the owner to disconnect the fuel line on this vehicle and run the engine for even a few seconds. Now I'm sure it was a frustrating experience brought on by vandals. I'll bet most insurance companies will make the owner responsible for a big deductible. But after twisting wrenches for 50 years I'd buy the owner dinner if he can get anyone other than the shop owner making the estimate to agree with his claims.
Its clear the article has
Its clear the article has many missing elements and some things just dont make sense but I think some of you are out of touch with how expensive repairs are if you dont do them yourself. If you get water in the fuel and they hit the injectors it quickly destroys them and replacing all the injectors at a dealer is about 5K parts and labor just for the Triton V8. Then you have the issue with the fuel pump being cooled by the fuel in the tank and destroying that requires dropping the tank to replace it and things quickly add up. Heck, until just recently Ford Triton engines had a bad habit of blowing spark plugs and Ford's remedy was to replace the entire head at $2500 a pop.
I guess for me, the outrage ought to be directed at the thieves who did this because the possible repair bill is not unbelievable.
Hey
billb-Where are you? jimmy carter just called bfranklin a moron...or do you just admonish posters that call liberals dumb? Me thinks that is the case.