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Date Published: 01/02/2022

ARCHIVED - Catalytic converter thieves who targeted parked cars in Alicante arrested

ARCHIVED ARTICLE

The gang targeted car parks in Elche and Alcoy stealing expensive car units

<span style='color:#780948'>ARCHIVED</span> - Catalytic converter thieves who targeted parked cars in Alicante arrested

Catalytic converter thefts continue to be a problem on the Costa Blanca with thieves prepared to go to great lengths to get their hands on the expensive exhaust emission control devices and the platinum inside.

But in Alicante, the brakes have been put on the criminal antics of a gang that specialised in the theft of these car parts, targeting vehicles parked on public roads and in car parks in Elche and Alcoy.

The National Police in Elche has arrested six suspects after a special surveillance was set up following a number of reports of catalytic converter thefts in the town centre and Torrellano Alto district.

But the investigation stepped up a gear when a member of the public called 091 emergency reporting a theft in progress in Avenida Universidad de Elche. Three men were allegedly tampering with the underneath of several parked cars.

When police arrived, the suspects had already fled in a vehicle with a foreign number plate, according to witnesses, which was stopped by officers minutes later with three Romanian men inside.

A search of the vehicle uncovered a "recently removed" catalytic converter stashed under the driver's seat along with several hacksaw blades, a hydraulic jack, screwdrivers, two sets of car keys and torches.

Within hours, a resident from Alcoy called the 091 incident room claiming several people were loitering in a nearby car park flashing torches underneath parked vehicles.

A police patrol was sent to the car park, and despite attempts to make a run for it, three Bulgarian men were arrested and a variety of cutting tools were seized.

Investigations are ongoing and further arrests have not been ruled out.

"The priority now is to discover where the stolen catalytic converters are being bought and sold. There are indications that those arrested acted by order to supply clandestine workshops, or to sell them in scrap yards or on the black market," according to police sources.

The detainees, aged between 21 and 41-years-old, all have police records for similar offences and will appear before the Examining Magistrate's Court in Elche.

Images: Policia Nacional

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