National Threat Assessment 2008. Organised Crime - Politie

Table 8
Development of recorded car theft, 2000-2007: numbers and percentages per age category
2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007
0 to 3 years 4,257 4,092 4,429 3,486 2,960 2,721 2,871 2,676
>3 years 20,930 18,998 18,950 15,482 13,567 11,123 9,950 9,215
Total 25,187 23,090 23,379 18,968 16,527 13,844 12,821 11,891
Age category as a percentage of the total number of stolen cars
0 to 3 years 16.9 17.7 18.9 18.4 17.9 19.7 22.4 22.5
>3 years 83.1 82.3 81.1 81.6 82.1 80.3 77.6 77.5
Source: Stichting Aanpak Voertuigcriminaliteit (Foundation for Tackling Vehicle Crime)
4.5.4 Criminal organisation
Criminal organisations that are involved in car theft are typically highly organised
and exercise control over the entire logistics chain. Bringing together supply and
demand, selecting the vehicles, ordering the theft, the theft itself, the use of
modern technology, the transport, the storage, the ringing, the forged papers,
the export and the delivery are all links in a complex logistical process.
Sometimes the entire process is managed by the organisations themselves;
sometimes there is a chain of groups, each of which carries out a link in the
process relatively independently.
Organised car theft is carried out by local, national and international groups
or networks. Within the criminal infrastructure the following function groups
play a role: customers and handlers of stolen goods, burglars and car thieves,
couriers, ringers (often working for existing vehicle repair shops), document
forgers, facilitators and intermediaries.
The groups of thieves frequently have a multi-ethnic composition and mainly
consist of young men aged between 16 and 20. They are usually specialists in a
certain area, such as theft aided by burglary or showroom raids. Due to the use of
electronic security systems in cars the groups of thieves are relying more and more
on special hardware and software to manipulate the engine management system.
People who could be considered intermediaries and facilitators play an important
role. The role of facilitator mainly consists of providing shipbroker services and
performing financial transactions. The role of intermediary can be essential in
the sale of a stolen car because the intermediary is in contact with the customer
and reports the requirements regarding the car to the car thieves. In various
police investigations the same names of people in certain roles turn up time
and time again.
162 National Threat Assessment 2008 – Organised crime