You might think that it takes careful and long-term planning for car thieves to drive your car away. However, with the advancement of technology that we have today, it has actually become pretty convenient for them to do so. Yikes!
In fact, it’s so easy that it only takes less than 10 seconds for these unscrupulous men to commit the crime. How? All thanks to high-tech devices like signal jammers and frequency duplicators. Now you see it, now you don’t! 🙁
For illustration purposes only | source: cilisos. My
Senior Asst Comm Khairuldin Saad was quoted by The Star as saying,
“Gone are the days when thieves unlocked the vehicle manually, hot-wired it to start and drove the car away.”
He added that nowadays, car thieves have the help of sophisticated gadgets and would only take less than 6 seconds to unlock a vehicle before stealing it. For example, they would use a “programmer” or “frequency duplicator” – this helps them copy the radio channel in order to unlock key-less vehicles. And to avoid being traced by the authorities, they would use a GPS jammer once they have driven off with the stolen vehicle.
As for how they’re able to obtain these gadgets to aid their crime, Khairuldin said that they are able to easily get them via online shopping. How come so easy one?!
For illustration purposes only | source: carsifu. My
According to police investigations, it was reported that there are actually multiple facets when it comes to car theft. Apparently, there are usually people hired for specific roles such:
- The thief who will be tasked with stealing the vehicle
- The transporter who would ferry the vehicle to its last stop
- The mastermind of the crime
Khairuldin explained, “The thief would steal the car, drop it off at a designated location for a middleman to pick it up.”
“The mastermind would decide on what to do with the stolen vehicle – to strip or sell it abroad,” he added.
On top of that, he explained other protocols that they adhere to. For example:
- They would use parking lots at supermarkets and around residential areas as their drop-off point to avoid suspicion.
- Syndicate members would not meet up with each other. In most cases, they would not know each other too.
- Each person is assigned to a specific task and are paid differently for their roles (thief, middleman etc.). For example, thieves assigned to steal a Toyota Vellfire would get about RM5,000 to RM7,000 per car.
- This payment would be made via online transactions because it makes it harder for cops to trace them, even if one member gets arrested.
For illustration purposes only | source: blog
Hence, if you want to prevent car theft, do pay heed to Khairuldin’s advice – he urged vehicle owners to go back to basics by installing extra locking systems. This includes a pedal, brake and steering locks.
“These old fashioned locks would make it longer and harder for them to take away the vehicle,” he said.
Well, now that you know how fast it takes for these thieves to steal a vehicle, it’s time to up your car’s security features and avoid the areas that are their prime targets!
Also read:Beware: Girl Almost Got Car Stolen AND Kidnapped at Aeon Shah Alam
