Gangs have a new way to easily steal cars

A new method makes it easy for criminals to steal cars. Car rental companies and leasing companies suffer.

Although cars are becoming more and more secure, there are always criminals who know how to crack codes, software and locks. Will that be too difficult? Then criminals will come up with another sneaky trick.

Steal cars

De Telegraaf reports that professional gangs from Eastern Europe have successfully embezzled cars. Rene Middag, Mobile Banditry Project Manager for the National Police, says cars borrowed from rental and leasing companies are no longer being returned en masse. “It used to happen sometimes, but now it happens on a larger scale and almost a quarter of all stolen cars are embezzlement,” Middag told the newspaper.

But what is the new method that allows gangs to easily steal cars? You simply rent or lease the cars and drive them to Eastern Europe. The companies that rent out the cars only realize after some time that the car is no longer driving in the Netherlands. “Then a car like this has been in use for a long time in an Eastern European country with a different license plate,” says Middag.

No solution yet

Once in Eastern Europe, the gangs stealing the cars have enough time to disable the tracks. They are also good at forging papers and have a captor who rents or leases under a false identity.

“We don’t yet have a clear picture of exactly how everything works, but there are various international studies underway. Because the problem exists across Europe,” Middag told De Telegraaf.