San Francisco woman returns to Prius to find car disassembled, battery stolen

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- A San Francisco woman says her car was broken into but not in a way she would have expected.

Marjory Kaplan had parked her 2017 hybrid Prius a block from her Pacific Heights apartment. When she returned she hardly recognized the car. It was completely disassembled and someone had stolen the battery.

"You know, you go looking for your car and you know what you car looks like. It didn't look like my car. It looked like a jalopy car. It looked different. It looked disheveled," Kaplan told ABC7 News.

"They took the seat out, cut all the wires and removed the battery which I understand weighs 180 pounds," she explained.

In 2015, ABC7 News reported on a string of car battery thefts from hybrid cars in San Francisco.

People would steal Prius batteries to sell them on the black market. The batteries can sell for $1,000 or even more.

Kaplan had not been aware of this kind of theft. She posted on the neighborhood app NextDoor to bring awareness to other Prius owners.

The break-in happened on Webster Street, across from 2300 California Street.

Kaplan filed a police report, but does not believe any of the security cameras on the street caught the break-in, so does not expect much to happen.

Kaplan said she will likely get rid of her car and start taking public transportation instead.