RIYADH, 18 November 2003 — Abu Bakr, the marketing manager of a polyclinic here, had just filled up his brand new Toyota Camry at a gas station when a vehicle rammed the boot of his car. As Abu Bakr got out to inspect the damage, an Arab youth jumped into the car and sped away with it. The other driver also fled.
“My mobile was inside the car, so I couldn’t contact the police immediately. Two weeks later, when the police recovered my vehicle, they found all the tires slashed,” Abu Bakr told Arab News. Besides the tire damage, the vehicle bore other marks of rough handling.
Inquiries show that those involved in car thefts are mostly young men who make off with other people’s vehicles to go joyriding in the desert outside the capital.
As unemployment continues to increase, they are adopting increasingly sophisticated tactics to steal cars. Both Saudis and expatriates are involved in this crime, which shows no signs of abating.
Official statistics released by the Riyadh police indicate that 3,341 car thefts took place in the capital in a single year. Overall, a total of 19,149 vehicles were stolen in Riyadh during the last 10 years.
According to Muhammad Al-Humaidy, a student of mass communication at Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University, the car thieves have their eyes mostly on Camrys and Cressidas because of their good resale value. He said a friend parked his Cressida in front of hospital, where he had gone to visit an acquaintance. When he returned, his car was gone.
Ashraf Vengat of a local polyclinic points out that many people make the mistake of leaving the engine running when they stop at a shop for minor purchases. That provides a window of opportunity for car thieves. Others pose as police officers and intimidate car owners before robbing them of their vehicles.
Besides joyriding, vehicles are also stolen for drug smuggling and other types of crime. Thieves also target abandoned cars, either for their license plates or for spare parts which can be sold to second-hand dealers. Two abandoned cars that were parked in front of the Arab News office here for a long time now have their license plates missing.
Salman Al-Bukhari, a Saudi employee working as a sales executive, said one of the factors responsible for the growth in car theft was a lack of deterrent punishment. Car thieves, he said, can simply walk out of a police station by giving a signed commitment that they will not do it again. Otherwise they receive 100 lashes if they are Saudis and 500 if they are expatriates. Soon they are back on the streets looking for more cars to steal, he added.
