An Aurora man has been sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay $31,500 in restitution for a bold crime wave that left northern Illinois car owners fuming. Octavio Goytia, 29, stole catalytic converters from over 35 vehicles across eight northern Illinois counties, Attorney General Kwame Raoul said as he announced Goytia’s sentence on Tuesday.
The sentencing follows a two-year investigation by Raoul’s office, which revealed Goytia and his accomplice, Pedro Villegas-Mendoza, 24, also of Aurora, targeted vehicles in Cook, DuPage, Kane, Will, DeKalb, Lake, McHenry, and Winnebago counties between August 2021 and March 2022.
The duo stole catalytic converters in broad daylight, jacking up vehicles and using a saw to remove the devices. Villegas-Mendoza was sentenced to six years in prison in August of last year…