Filenews 29 April 2023
In recent months, luxury thieves have been grabbing expensive cars and making them disappear, but they are not limited to that. They have taken another step which makes it difficult to trace both themselves and the vehicles.
In particular, the thieves allegedly collaborated with individuals who introduced a system to disable modern devices installed mainly in luxury cars.
Theoretically, these vehicles, due to their security systems, cannot be stolen or cannot be stolen without being located since the owner can monitor where his vehicle is at any time.
The issue of theft was brought to the surface by Green MP Stavros Papadouris who included it for discussion in the parliamentary committee on transport. Mr. Papadouris told "F" that the device for deactivating the systems that keep the owner of these luxury vehicles informed is expensive and wondered who would spend so much money to buy it, where did they get the device from, if its import is allowed and if not, how did it get into the Republic of Cyprus? Whether the introduction of such systems can be done legally is a matter for discussion, while at the same time, if they are forbidden to enter the Republic of Cyprus, answers must be given as to where there may be a hole through which they pass, Papadouris said.
As he said, the latest case of which he became aware concerns a luxury vehicle that had been stolen in Limassol and which was found not because its location was detected, which had been deactivated by those who stole it, but for other unrelated reasons.
Mr. Papadouris, who had also registered for discussion the issue of catalytic converter theft from vehicles, expressed the opinion that behind such cases of theft there may be locals who engage in various criminal offenses covered behind seemingly legitimate businesses, while the dirty work of theft is carried out by individuals or groups, local or foreign. who, either because they have found a way for easy profit or to satisfy some of their needs, are persuaded to engage in theft of this kind.
Due to the expertise required to operate some devices and the possibility that the fraud is "imported", he did not rule out the possibility that the masterminds and executive bodies are not Cypriots or foreigners whom they then recruit.
Papadouris also did not rule out the possibility that the theft offences could be linked to other unrelated but also serious offences.
The issue included in the Transport Committee is entitled, "The increase in theft of private vehicles and the possible granting of further legislation to detect them".
As Mr. Papadouris had mentioned before the committee, one of the possibilities to be examined is the transfer of these luxury vehicles to the occupied areas, through the Green Line points. The other option is to find a way to re-export the vehicles in various ways, or even to keep them in Cyprus for future exploitation purposes.
The press spokesman of the Police, Mr. Christos Andreou, told "F" that vehicle thefts are reported but mainly concern incidents of omission of the owner either forgetting the keys inside the vehicle, or leaving them open for a few minutes, without it crossing their minds that it is possible to find someone to steal them.
Moreover, as far as luxury vehicle rackets are concerned, these mainly concern the alteration of their chassis number, usually abroad, and their transport and sale in Cyprus.
How tracking devices work
It is recalled that before the parliamentary committee on Transport, MP Chrysanthos Savvides, citing an investigation, said that since 2020 1,638 vehicles have been stolen, of which only one third have been located. He said that according to information, some of these vehicles end up in the occupied areas. With regard to GPS devices used to locate vehicles, which are either integrated into new vehicles or then installed in used ones, we have been told that they provide the ability to locate a moving object, which can be monitored remotely, even 24 hours a day on the map. The surveillance/monitoring of the vehicle can be done from a mobile phone, computer or tablet. The owner of the device accesses the tracking service through a code. Their size may be proportional to a lighter and is placed in a place that is not obvious at first glance, in order to prevent its removal. Some of these systems, after their activation, when the theft of the vehicle is attempted, send a notification to its owner via sms, viber, email, etc. The information is sent, whether someone tries to start the engine of the vehicle or even tow it while it is parked. Some devices allow the owner of a vehicle to turn off the engine remotely.
