(21 October) Police in Chonburi province are searching for a prolific motorcycle theft gang in the region, whose victims include an American citizen.
The American, Bill, told Khaosod English that a group of thieves had broken into his apartment′s locked parking lot at Moo 6, Nongprue, Banglamung district, on the night of 27 September and proceeded to steal his Honda CBR250R. Another resident′s Kawasaki Ninja 250 was also taken away by the thieves.
In a CCTV footage provided by Bill, who has requested to be identified only by his first name, the group of suspects could be seen arriving at the scene on their motorcycles. One of the suspect, who appeared to be unaware of the CCTV, later removed his mask and showed his face to the camera as he and other accomplices slowly towed the stolen motorcycles away.
Bill added that he has contacted the police, but he has not seen any progress about the investigation.
Reached by our correspondent on the phone, Pol.Lt.Col. Thanadech Duangtapiyachai, an investigative officer at Nongprue Police Station, insisted that his force has been working very hard to identify the suspects behind the theft.
"We are very concerned. We don?t ignore these cases," said the officer.
Pol.Lt.Col. Thanadech also expressed his belief that the thieves might be teenage individuals who have been receiving orders for the expensive motorcycles from a foreign black market, as police in neighbouring districts have reported about the thefts in similar manners as well.
"We are working closely with other police stations to identify these suspects," Pol.Lt.Col. Thanadech told our correspondent, adding that the police in Nong Prue district have previously arrested 7-8 teenage suspects on the charges of stealing motorcycles in the area.
However, he said the images in the CCTV footage provided by the American are "too unclear" to help identify the individuals.
Nevertheless, those who may have the clues to the theft of the two motorcycles are encouraged to notify the local police forces.
Correction: Due to an editorial error, the original version of this article identified the owner of Kawasaki Ninja motorcycle as Bill′s tenant. The owner is in fact another resident living in the same apartment building.
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