Økonomisk Kriminalitet Nordiske Perspektiver - Scandinavian ...

“hard working.” Drug addicts and drunkards are overrepresented among
Norwegian burglars and thieves. The Eastern Europeans are very straight and
sober, in that sense. They know exactly what they want when entering Norway,
where to go, what to steal and how to leave. Their cars have hidden compartments
for advanced burglary tools, GPS prepared addresses and “shipping” lists from
fences and businessmen back home.
A Lithuanian team who came to Norway in 2007 with specially constructed tools
and equipment to steal CD players, radios, cell phones, GPS equipments and
airbags from (just) Mercedes, BMW and Audi, did more than 41 successful jobs in
a row. Criminal professionalism like that is far beyond “the run of the mill car
thefts that we are used to in this country.” 8) Two brothers from Poland did 85
burglaries in a row in 2007. “The residential areas they targeted had been chosen
ahead of time and just a few makes of car had been picked out for the break-ins. 9)
They were in debt and had to steal, at least they said so, but they were a part of the
market anyway, and had to do the time, while the fence got away with it. A 24 old
burglar from Albania was caught in March 2008 after more than 70 “jobs” in a
short period. He belonged to a team who did home “visits” by night, to steal PCs,
money, jewellery, digital cameras, cell phones, play stations, clothes etc.
“This was a special kind of activity in that the burglaries took place at night in
houses where the occupants were sleeping. It is also characterised by the fact that
there are several break-ins every night in a limited geographical area (…) In most
cases, a particular method of break-in was used; this in itself makes it stand apart.
Two or three holes have been drilled into the window frame, and then a steel wire
inserted in order to open the handle on the window. According to investigators,
this is a technique which is not often used as it requires precision and
coordination and is therefore not used by those who are intoxicated.” 10)
And sober he was when the police dog went after him; he just turned around to
meet the dog in a counterattack. “This is very unusual behaviour.” 11)
An Albanian network, which had its high season in 2005, specialized in onearmed
bandits. They were very mobile, and visited several parts of the country late
at night with sledgehammers and wrecking bars, to rob shopping centres they had
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