Car theft gang crippled with three arrests in Pendang

PENDANG: Police here have crippled the "3-di" car theft gang with four arrests at the Kobah train station here.

Kedah police chief Datuk Zainuddin Yaacob said that the first three arrests were made on Sept 18, when three members of the gang were caught red-handed while in the midst of stealing a car at the station's parking lot.

He added that the gang had stripped down six cars and had been selling the parts to a second-hand parts dealer in Pendang since April.

Zainuddin said that they were called "Geng 3-di", as all their names ended with "di" and added that the names of three of those arrested are Zunaidi, Mahadi and Zaidi.

“Zunaidi, 26, is the youngest brother of 44-year-old Mahadi, while their cousin Zaidi, is only 20, ” he said.

He said that after the arrests of Zunaidi, Mahadi and Zaidi, interrogations led to the arrest of one of their friends and a 50-year-old buyer of the stolen parts.

Zainuddin said that three gang members and the buyer have been remanded until Thursday (Sept 26) to assist with the investigation under Section 379(A)(1) of the Penal Code for motor vehicle theft and Section 414 of the same Act for the concealment of stolen property.

On the thefts, he said that the remnants of four Proton Wira cars and two Perodua Kancil cars that were reported stolen were recovered from various locations around Pendang.

"All the cars are estimated to be worth RM8,000 to RM10,000 per unit, and the gang would strip the cars 'naked' and set the chassis on fire to avoid detection," said Zainuddin.