A major boat chop shop operation appears to have been discovered near Grand Lake in Grove Oklahoma. Several hundred motors appear to be involved. KWTV news reported over $300,000 in merchandise might be involved. If you are with a boat, trailer, or engine manufacturer, please pass this article on to those maintaining lists of stolen marine equipment or aiding in its recovery. Hopefully, they will be able to assist some of your customers in recovering their equipment.

I spoke with the Lake Patrol just before noon Monday 14 September. They reported they would know more after completing the inventory which they estimated would take 2 more days.

Tulsa World
13 Sept 1998
By Barbara Allen

Bill Myers and Nathan Vaughn, both with the Grand River Dam Association, inspect an altered serial number on an outboard motor at a suspected marine chop shop near Grove.

Investigators say the case may end up being the biggest bust of stolen goods in Oklahoma history.

GROVE -- Officials found what they believe may be one of the largest boat "chop shops" in Oklahoma history this weekend in a sprawling sheet metal building just off Grand Lake.

Officials with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol and the Grand River Dam Association said they plan to spend several days inventorying the boats, motors, parts and trailers at Frankie's Marine Service and Repair near Grove.

Highway Patrol Lt. Stuart Meyer said the possible marine chop shop bust "is going to end up being the largest," in Oklahoma history.

He speculated that the investigation could yield up to $100,000 in stolen boats, motors and trailers. Chop shops typically buy and sell stolen automobile parts.

Bill Myers of the Grand River Dam Association Lake Patrol said that although that was a lot of money, boat theft is a surprisingly big business.

"It's a big thing all over the United States," Myers said. "They're so easy to be here today and gone tomorrow."

In 1996, about $20 billion was lost to boat theft in the United States, Highway Patrol Trooper Randy Bland said.

"We have a 75 percent recovery rate on stolen cars and less than 13 percent recovery rate on boats," Bland said.

Investigators spent Friday and Saturday at the marina questioning the business's owner and checking the numerous boats, parts and accessories on marina property. They estimated that they would have to check more than 1,000 serial numbers before their investigation would be complete.

Owner Frankie Howerton was being questioned, but had not been arrested as of late Saturday, Bland said. He and other investigators at the scene said Howerton had been cooperative, and Howerton had no such previous arrests or convictions that officials knew of, Bland said.

Myers said the GRDA has eyed the business with suspicion for about a year because of some discrepancies in boat ownership titles. As evidence grew, he said, officials at GRDA discovered that the Highway Patrol also was looking into the matter.

"During the course of the investigation, we noticed several items with the serial numbers removed, which makes us ask questions," Bland said.

On Friday the agencies served a search warrant at the marina and found a stolen boat, a motor and a trailer, together worth about $20,000, Bland said. He said boat theft often involves those three elements: boats, boat motors and boat trailers.

He said authorities would check every item on the lot, from the used boats for sale on the side of the business to the contents of boxes stored in the large sheet metal building behind the business.

"Most of our suspected stolen merchandise is in the metal building here in the back," Bland said, pointing to the large but discreet structure. "It's an out-of-sight, out-of-mind type of thing."

He said there were four boats and about 300 motors in the back building, and another 75 to 100 motors in the repair shop ready for resale.

He had boats for sale on the lot next to the repair area that were worth from $500 to $20,000 and up. Bland said new boats can cost anywhere from a few hundred dollars to more than a million dollars.

As of Saturday afternoon, they had only confirmed that a few items on the grounds were stolen, but Bland said there would be many more.

Officials said they would not know how much more stolen merchandise they may recover or exactly how much it would be worth.

The marina is a few hundred feet from the Elk River portion of Grand Lake in Delaware County. The marina repairs boats and sells them for people, officials said.

Bland said that lake officers take these kinds of investigations seriously, and don't find the term "chop shop" limited to one kind of transportation.

"It's just a chop shop," he said. "Whether it's for boats or vehicles, it's the same thing."

Copyright 1998, World Publishing Co. All rights reserved.

KJRH Channel 2 Tulsa News

The Oklahoma Highway Patrol and the Grand River Dam Authority planned to spend the next few days inventorying the boats, motors, parts and trailers at Frankie's Marine Service and Repair near Grove.

Highway Patrol spokesman, Lt. Stuart Meyer, said the investigation could yield up to $100,000 in stolen boats, motors and trailers. Chop shops typically buy and sell stolen automobile parts.

In 1996, about $20 billion was lost to boat theft in the United States, Highway Patrol Trooper Randy Bland said.

"We have a 75 percent recovery rate on stolen cars and less than 13 percent recovery rate on boats," Bland said.

Investigators spent Friday and Saturday at the marina questioning the business's owner and checking the numerous boats, parts and accessories on marina property.

They estimated that they would have to check more than 1,000 serial numbers before their investigation would be complete.

Owner Frankie Howerton was questioned, but was not arrested late Saturday, Bland said. He and other investigators at the scene said Howerton had been cooperative, and Howerton had no known previous arrests or convictions, Bland said.

The GRDA has eyed the business with suspicion for about a year because of some discrepancies in boat ownership titles, said Bill Myers of the Grand River Dam Authority Lake Patrol. As evidence grew, officials at GRDA discovered that the Highway Patrol also was looking into the matter.

There were four boats and about 300 motors in the back building, and another 75 to 100 motors in the repair shop ready for resale.

Officials said the boats for sale on the lot next to the repair area were worth from $500 to $20,000 and up.

As of Saturday afternoon, they had only confirmed that a few items on the grounds were stolen.

The marina, located near the Elk River portion of Grand Lake in Delaware County, repairs boats and sells them for people, officials said.

Copyright 1998 by The Associated Press.  All Rights Reserved.

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