Operation "Red Wolf": 13 arrests for motorway thefts, goods worth 700,000 euros recovered
The Highway Police dismantles a criminal organisation specialising in acrobatic thefts from moving heavy vehicles. Luxury goods worth 700,000 euros recovered.
The acrobatic theft gang
According to poliziadistato.it, the Highway Police concluded Operation "Red Wolf" with the arrest of 13 people accused of belonging to a criminal organisation engaged in stealing goods from lorries in transit on the national motorway network. The arrested individuals were taken into custody on the authority of the competent Public Prosecutor's Office. A 14th person was reported for receiving stolen goods, having provided a premises for storage of the stolen merchandise.
The investigation was conducted by the Judicial Police Squad of the Emilia-Romagna Highway Police Division, together with officers from the Pavia Section and the Modena Nord and Forlì A14 Subsections. Operational activities documented the use of a particularly dangerous technique called "acrobatic thefts" or "surfing": a vehicle would approach a semi-trailer whilst moving, and an accomplice would access the cargo hold through an opening made in the rear door panel.
The operation was launched following an attempted theft from an articulated lorry on the A21 in recent months. Investigators monitored the group's movements along the motorway, tracking a convoy comprising several vehicles and identifying a lorry that had just been plundered. They then located two logistics bases used by the gang in the provinces of Pavia and Piacenza, where they intervened simultaneously in the early morning hours.
During the searches, the entire stolen cargo was recovered: luxury goods valued at approximately 700,000 euros, subsequently returned to the owners. Investigators also seized all vehicles used by the organisation to commit the crimes. Further investigations are ongoing to verify the group's involvement in similar incidents across the national territory.
Source: Google News IT — Crime (it)