Botswana: Rising Motor Theft Worries Police

Police have recorded a 23 percent increase in theft of motor vehicles since the beginning of the year compared to the same period last year. While 89 vehicles were reported stolen during the same period last year, the thieves have struck 110 times this year.

Senior Superintendent Milton Mapange of the Serious Crime Squad said yesterday that most of the cars are abandoned after they are used in the commission of other crimes like robbery and house break-ins. He revealed that the criminals target Toyota vehicles, especially mini-buses and open vans. "They also target government vehicles parked in schools, clinics and council premises," he said. Mapange added that most of the stolen cars have been recovered and the police are following leads about the missing ones. He explained that car theft often involves syndicates because a vehicle should have an immediate market after it has been stolen. He suspected that scrap yards are a lucrative market for stolen cars in Botswana. The vehicles are stripped at the yards and their parts sold to unsuspecting customers.

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