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Three men have been arrested on suspicion of stealing about 70 cars worth about 80 million yen in Kanagawa and Shizuoka prefectures since January 2018.
According to police, two of the suspects, who were classmates since elementary school, were apprehended at the crime scene, Sankei Shimbun reported. They were identified as Hayato Ogata, 36, a company employee residing in Kanagawa Prefecture's Hiratsuka City, and Tatsuya Taniike, 37, a truck driver. The third male suspect has yet to be identified.
In August, the three were caught in the act of stealing a passenger vehicle estimated to be worth two million yen from a rental parking lot in Isehara City, Kanagawa Prefecture
Police said the three suspects have admitted stealing the cars and quoted them as saying they needed money for living expenses.
Police said they suspect the three have been involved in other crimes and continuing their investigation.
© Japan Today
9 Comments
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Do the hustle
I’m curious as to how they fenced the stolen cars. We’re they stripped and parted out? We’re they shipped overseas? Or, did they change the compliance and serial numbers to resell them in Japan? To steal and fence such a large number of cars there must be more people involved. Those who actually steal the cars are the lackies at the bottom end of the chain.
garymalmgren
Do the Husstle
the same thought went through my head.
Also, how did they do it?
With auto makers adding more and more (useless) gimmicks all the time, you would think that thiefproofing would be pretty well up there on the list of necessary items.
Gary
tooheysnew
they could make a movie about this.
oh hang on, they already have.
The Avenger
Use a high quality steering wheel lock. Most thieves won't bother after seeing one installed.
Disillusioned
Most car thefts are not crimes of opportunity. The majority of car thefts are carried out by highly organised crime gangs targeting specific vehicle models, most usually for parts. Steering wheel locks do very little if your car is on the acquisition list. They just cut through the steering wheel with pneumatic sheers. As stated above, for this trio to steal and resell so many cars they had to be part of a larger organisation.
Kag
@The Avenger
You'll still need to turn your steering left or right, reverse park, reverse gear it so they can't tow it away easily.
But you can only do so much.
kurisupisu
Much more documentation needed to export cars legally now.
However, if the shipping yards are bent then that is how they are getting out...
freedom-of-speech
How is it that the police name the suspects, do we or the news incl. JT know if they are guilty?