RIYADH, 27 May 2005 — Riyadh Police smashed a gang of auto parts thieves that has been hitting different parts of the capital city for months.
After receiving reports from both Saudis and foreigners with similar details of parts thefts from Ford vehicles, police hatched a plan to snare the gang through stakeouts of used auto parts stores in Riyadh.
Unscrupulous dealers buy the stolen parts on the cheap and then resell them at market prices. One such dealer was arrested after an investigation of his parts inventory. During interrogation, he admitted that he knew the parts were stolen and agreed to lead officers to the ring of thieves.
Police arrested three men, aged 20-24, who are facing charges of possession of stolen property. Gang members confessed and detailed their mode of operations, which included targeting vehicles and then determining through surveillance when owners would not be present. Gang members then broke out the rear windows of the vehicles and stole lightweight parts with high resale values. Parts later were sold to used-parts shops.
