KUCHING: The district police headquarters (IPD) have neutralised 15 vehicle theft syndicates with the arrest of 329 suspects and recovered 318 vehicles since 2021.
Kuching police chief ACP Ahsmon Bajah revealed this in a press conference yesterday, during the last day of a 10-day integrated operation codenamed ‘Ops Lejang’.
The operation, involving 48 personnel, managed to recover seven vehicles reported missing previously.
He pointed out that from year 2021 until March this year, a total of 926 vehicles consisting of 710 motorcycles and 216 automobiles of various types were reported missing in Kuching, involving losses amounting to RM6,036,945.
“Since then, we have launched 21 large-scale operations and formed five Counter Aggressive Teams (CATs) and one Lejang Team to hunt down suspects involved in vehicle thefts.
“As a result, 15 syndicates were crippled with the arrest of 329 suspects. We also managed to recover 200 motorcycles and 118 vehicles from the syndicates, with a total value of RM3,279,450,” he said.
Overall, the Kuching IPD managed to recover a total of 340 vehicles from 2021 until March this year. The breakdown as follows: 74 vehicles in 2021; 101 vehicles in 2022; 135 vehicles in 2023; and 30 vehicles as of March this year.
“Based on our research, we found out at least 35 cases involved stolen vehicles being parked at the suspect’s residences. Surprisingly, they used the vehicles daily to commute to work,” he said.
Ahsmon shared that they have identified at least 15 hotspots for vehicle theft activities in Kuching.
They are Samariang, Demak Laut, Metrocity, Tabuan Heights, Taman Satria Jaya, BDC Stampin, King Centre, Jalan Petanak, Jalan Abell, Jalan Tun Ahmad Zaidi Adruce, Jalan Rock, Sarawak General Hospital (SGH) area, Majma Mall area, Waterfront Kuching, and Farley area.
