Navin Khanna admits to running multistate stolen parts operation, faces up to 17 years in prison

July 25 — A New Jersey resident has pleaded guilty in federal court to leading one of the largest catalytic converter theft rings in U.S. history, a criminal enterprise that netted more than $600 million by selling stolen parts to a metal refinery.

Navin Khanna, 41, admitted to operating D.G. Auto Parts and conspiring with others to acquire and resell massive quantities of stolen catalytic converters from states including Oklahoma and Texas between May 2020 and October 2022. The plea was entered Monday in U.S. District Court in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The operation was first uncovered in May 2021, when Tulsa police found nearly 130 catalytic converters in a truck bed during a traffic stop prompted by an off-duty officer’s suspicions. The bust occurred amid a national spike in catalytic converter thefts, driven by the rising value of metals like platinum, palladium, and rhodium found in the devices.

Khanna acknowledged that he sold most of the stolen converters to Dowa Metals & Mining, a New Jersey-based refinery owned by Japan’s Dowa Holdings Co., a component of the Nikkei 225 index. While Dowa Metals has not been charged, the company’s role in the resale chain is under scrutiny.

Khanna pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to traffic stolen goods and five counts of money laundering. He now faces a maximum sentence of 14 to 17.5 years in prison.

An attorney for Khanna did not respond to requests for comment.