A TEENAGER arrested for attempted car theft has revealed to police how much he gets per stolen vehicle. The 19-year-old was arrested at Gateway in December for an attempted hijacking. Durban North police have now revealed what they learned from the criminal who was sentenced for the crime.

Capt Raymond Deokaran, spokesman for the station, said the teenager told police that he would get more than R5 000 for every Polo stolen. Last week, police issued a warning to VW Polo owners who were being targeted by a criminal syndicate.

“Last month we recorded 32 car thefts, Polos accounted for 70 per cent of that number. They are extremely popular cars with criminals due to their speed. During interrogation he revealed he would get R5 000 for every one of the vehicles he stole. They would then park the car off in a certain spot because the vehicle was ‘hot’, meaning members of the police, a tracking or security company were searching for the vehicle. When the vehicle is eventually picked up by the syndicate, the thief is then paid his money.

The hijacker also revealed that different stolen vehicles have different monetary values.

“We are still looking for a few suspects we believe are linked to car theft in the area. Our crime intelligence is working on several leads and we urge residents to be vigilant where they park their cars and to take every necessary precaution to prevent car theft,” he said.

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