Up To Four Vehicles
Daily Stolen For Ransom
in Alajuela
Authorities
estimate that residents
of Alajuela centro pay
up to ¢2.5 million
colones (us$5.000) daily
as extortion to recover
their stolen vehicles, a
crime that is on the
rise according to a
report by the Organismo
de Investigacion
Judicial (OIJ).
The OIJ reports says
that daily four vehicles
are stolen and their
owners receive ransom
calls within minutes of
the theft. The callers
ask for large sums of
money, between ¢600.000
and ¢800.000 colones
(us$1.200 and us$1.60 on
average, to get their
vehicles back.
"Many fall in the trap",
said Nieves Rueda Rincón,
head of the Organismo de
Investigación (OIJ) en
Alajuela.
According to Rueda the
payment of ransom has
made it attractive for
car thieves to
concentrate on Alajuela
and the numbers are
alarming to authorities.
Between 2006 and 2007,
1.628 vehicles were
stolen from the streets
in Alajuela. The
majority were stolen
from being parked on
public roads and parking
lots, while a number
were stolen using the "bajonazo"
method or carjacking.
The OIJ chief added that
so far this year more
than 100 vehicles have
already been stolen.
"The people of Alajuela
are very trusting" said
Rueda, adding that the
majority of the vehicles
stolen did not have an
alarm or other security
device.
Rueda said that Alajuela
has become lucrative for
car thieves as the
owners of the cars pay
what is being asked and
are quick to withdraw
their complaints once
the vehicle is
recovered, telling
authorities that they
intent to negotiate or
already negotiated with
the thieves and without
police intervention.
Rueda added that one of
the lines being told to
the vehicle owners by
the thieves is that the
police investigators are
the ones tipped them off
to the robbery in an
attempt to discredit the
police investigators.
Rueda was adamant that
the statement is false.
The gangs are well
organized and have
eluded police attempts
to track them down. In
some cases, said Rueda,
the criminals use taxi
drivers to pick up the
ransom, the taxi drivers
getting a commission for
their role, or hire the
unemployed to visit the
victim to pick up the
ransom.
The OIJ believe that at
least three organized
gangs operate in
Alajuela. |
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