13 suspects were arrested in the case of the theft of luxury cars that were rented out. Europol helped Ukrainian law enforcement officers to expose a criminal group. At least 50 people were involved in the criminal network. The facts of the theft of 36 high-class cars have already been established.
Criminals carried out kidnappings mainly in Ukraine, but there were also cases of crimes committed on the territory of the EU. It was because of this that Europol managed to identify the group, the traces of which led the law enforcement officers to Ukraine.
The investigation started in Spain. A company from Malaga, which specializes in the rental of vehicles, complained to the police about the disappearance of the cars.
“During the operation codenamed “Matador”, law enforcement agencies in France, Germany, Latvia, Poland, Spain and Ukraine arrested 13 people responsible for large-scale luxury car thefts across Europe. Ongoing investigations revealed that the criminal group consists of more than of 50 people from different countries and is responsible for the appropriation of at least 36 luxury cars,” the Europol report said.
In total, more than 70 searches were conducted. 50 of them took place in Ukraine. The law enforcement officers seized more than 132,000 euros in cash from the criminals, as well as six cars, license plates and fake documents.
During the “Matador” operation, it was possible to arrest the leader of the criminal group, as well as several of its members – three citizens of Ukraine, six Russians, two Frenchmen, one citizen of Armenia and one Lithuanian.
It is known that the group had connections with other criminal groups that specialize in stealing cars in EU countries. They hope in Europol. that the arrest of criminals will help to expose a whole network of criminal organizations.
