Car thief apprehended in Riyadh

Police recently apprehended a man in his 20s for stealing a car from a citizen, only to learn that the suspect had stolen several cars and changed their exteriors to get away with his crimes.
Police followed the car thief after receiving a tip-off from a citizen and arrested him as he was purchasing accessories for a stolen car in the Naseem district east of the capital.
On arrest, police found keys for several cars inside the stolen Caprice, as well as tools used to open closed vehicles.
The thief would revamp the stolen cars so that they are not identifiable by their owners, and also changed their license plates.
According to police reports, car thefts in Jeddah are rising at an alarming rate.
“More than 1,000 cars have been stolen in the past three months. Some of them had valuables inside them at the time they were stolen,” said Lt. Nawaf Al-Bouq, Jeddah police spokesman.
“Police have managed to track down only 400 stolen cars so far,” he added.
Figures are based on registered complaints made with Jeddah police over the past three months.
Al-Bouq urged car owners to take precautionary measures to guard against robbery and ensure that their cars are properly locked.
He added that most thefts took place in older and poorer neighborhoods, such as Baghdadiah, Sharafiah, Saheefa and Ruwais, all illegal expat strongholds.
According to Yallamotors, a website on automobiles, more than 9,100 vehicles were reported stolen in 2013 from various parts of the country.
Among these, more than 4,200 vehicles were returned to their respective owners.
Riyadh ranks first for vehicle theft, with almost 4,000 cases, followed by Makkah, with more than 2,600 vehicles reported stolen.
Cars are most commonly stolen by duplicating car keys without drivers’ knowledge.
Thieves often pose as garage employees, security officials or even hotel drivers.
Further investigation is underway into the thefts and the most recent suspect will appear in court upon completion of procedures. Most crimes in the Kingdom are committed by illegal residents who have overstayed their visas, according to sources.
The government has since intensified the campaign against over-stayers. Illegal residents were allowed to leave the Kingdom without incurring penalties during the grace period, which ended Nov. 3, 2013.