The thieves' squads, funded by criminal organizations, are made up of several functionaries, each of whom has a designated mission in what appears to be an orderly and planned method of work. In the first stage, the patrol squads arrive. They invade pre-defined areas, according to the division of territory derived from the areas of operation of each of the organizations.
The scouts locate the cars relevant to the burglary squads themselves, who specialize in stealing cars from a particular product. They collect information not only about the location of the vehicles, their accessibility, and optimal arrival time but also about police patrols and surveillance in the area, recommended operating hours, and more.
The target of the thefts: Intelligence and the Krayot
Whether the theft was carried out for the purpose of dismantling for spare parts or for sale, in the case of a special car that was "ordered" in advance, to the destinations that were previously the most popular - Qalqilya and Tulkarm, two new destinations have recently joined - Jenin and Ramallah.
According to sources in the locating companies, there are several reasons for this. They point to the rise in living standards in these two cities, which also generates demand for stolen cars as well as the fact that these cities are far from the seamline and that thieves' sense of security increases when they are deep in the area, out of reach of police, military or patrol companies.
In some cases, the transition to the PA areas is not done at all on the familiar roads, but through huge gaps in the perforated separation fence, which allow the passage of vehicles. Unfortunately, these breaches are used not only for criminal activity but also for terrorist activity. "Gaps in the fence, which are used for the passage of Shavuot (illegal residents), are also used to transport vehicles at various points for the purpose of theft and sometimes, unfortunately, also terrorists," they say in Pointer. To the damage of billions of shekels to the Israeli market, and also feeds with money "scams and violence."
The impact of the move to Ramallah in central Samaria and Jenin in northern Samaria also changes the "heat map" of the cities from which cars are stolen. If in the past these were the coastal plain and the Sharon area, now these are Modi'in and the Krayot (with a 100% increase), which are becoming centers of activity for car thieves. Intelligence due to its proximity to Ramallah, and the Krayot due to the relative ease with which it is possible to reach area C.
Only six months in prison
To what extent can the thieves be arrested and imprisoned? As far as the Israeli legal system is concerned, it is difficult to build on deterrence. One was charged with two other accomplices in the theft. In another case, only six months of actual imprisonment was imposed on a defendant convicted on his confession of three counts of aiding and abetting a vehicle.
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