Catalytic converter thefts are on the rise—and apparently the costly metals found inside are precious enough to warrant risking one’s life for. Victims who are about to head off to work for the day start their car to find it has become extremely loud without the sound muffling device, while others come out to find that a thief has been crushed under their car due to a failed jack stand. That’s what happened when Anaheim police were called to the 1600 block of North Placentia Avenue early March 17, where they found a man wedged underneath a Toyota Prius, crushed to death by the weight of the vehicle while apparently attempting to steal the car’s catalytic converter. The Orange County Sheriff’s Department (OCSD) told The Epoch Times in February that it has observed a 650 percent increase in catalytic converter thefts throughout the past year. Three more deaths involving a catalytic converter theft occurred March 12, when two men inside a Dodge Ram 1500 truck that was being chased by police crashed …