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Caught. They stole the four wheels of cars that they left supported on bricks

A group that operated in Lisbon earned between 700 and 900 euros for theft of "packs" of wheels and rims, whose value can, on average, reach two or three thousand euros.

Three men, a hydraulic jack and just 15 minutes were enough to get the four wheels off the cars. When the owners woke up in the morning and went to the cars, they found them resting on two bricks.

Since June and during the last five months, the PSP has recorded more than 300 thefts of this type in cars, in the Lisbon area. An average of 60 cases per month.

The group now held by the police, made up of three men, between the ages of 21 and 27, was looking for luxury tires and wheels regardless of the car's brand.

However, the favorite targets were Mercedes, BMW and Renault. In the past two months, the French brand has been the most sought after.

The trio mostly looked for areas with little movement, but as time went on they gained confidence and in one case they attacked a Citröen DS in the middle of Avenida de Roma, one of the busiest places in the capital.

Highly profitable scheme

The business was highly profitable and had a built structure. Burglars searched for targets and then sold the stolen material for 700 to 800 euros, at stands and workshops.

The receivers resold for amounts between 1200 and 1500 euros. Values ​​well below the two thousand to three thousand euros that rims and tires are worth if they are legally purchased.

Quartermaster Resende, head of the Criminal Investigation Division of the Lisbon PSP, explained to journalists that this group already had some practice and “in 10 15 minutes they were able to remove the wheels from a vehicle and leave it resting on blocks”.

"In some situations the cars were damaged," says the investigator.

After arresting the group in the act at a garage in Benfica, Lisbon, last week, after two thefts in Almada, the PSP continued the investigation that made it possible to reach recipients. They are mainly owners of stands and workshops in Greater Lisbon.

After several search actions, some of the recipients were made defendants. Of the group of assailants, one was detained, −the element that the PSP believes is the headman - and the other two with periodic presentations. Two of the assailants were already referenced for thefts.

So far, the PSP has linked this group to 14 cases, and believes it will be linked to more than 306 registered since June.

In the total of the 14 cases that the investigation has already managed to relate to the detainees, the amount stolen amounts to 120 thousand euros.

Intendant Resende does not exclude, however, the possibility of more gangs involved.

“When a phenomenon appears that can be profitable, there may be more groups”, he considers.

Alvalade was the target of assailants

In the parish of Alvalade, theft of car wheels has long been a topic of conversation and raises concern among residents.

At Pastelaria D. Rodrigo, next to Avenida Gago Coutinho, the owner's son, Pedro Alves, speaks of several cases.

The same reports that the assailants are looking for “new cars, with good rims, good tires”.

[ohaladdins]