"Rent and run" car thefts are on the rise but a lack of regulations hampers retrieval efforts
Dinesh Ā· Jan 18, 2023 04:19 PM
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Bill Gates famously said, āI choose a lazy person to do a hard job. Because a lazy person will find an easy way to do it.ā Well, it appears that car theft syndicates here have taken that quote to heart by paying the bare minimum to rent luxury cars before running off with them.
Instead of going out of their way to do reconnaissance work and having to plan the move at ungodly hours, car theft syndicates are now getting the keys handed to them, albeit for a small fee.
The syndicates approach luxury car rental companies and pay the minimum required to rent it for a day or two. After receiving the car, they disable the GPS trackers and disappear.
Furthermore, this new modus operandi also plays right into the legal grey area as a lack of clarification on regulations and enforcement by authorities allows them to evade the law.
A previous case of a Toyota Alphard stolen from the Trevo platform.
According to a report in The Star, many of the victims, comprising big name car rental companies as well as app-based rental services, claim that the authorities didnāt even consider their cases a crime.
All they were told was to get a lawyer and initiate legal action against the renters for ābreach of contract.ā In many cases, the details provided by these renters would be fake anyways, leaving no trace of man or machine.
Further rubbing salt into their wounds, the syndicates would then proceed to list these cars for sale at ridiculously low prices against the actual market value. Apart from being listed locally, some end up being driven into Thailand and sold whole to be stripped for parts.
The rise of social media marketplaces and online selling platforms offers unheard of levels of anonymity to these syndicates.
Renters are required to provide a selfie with their IC but this step is hardly concrete in keeping things secure.
While some with half a brain would stop and think why these cars are being sold for a huge discount from their actual market value, the syndicates will claim the cars are loan defaults.
If the victims to manage to get in touch with the thieves, they'll be extorted for RM 5,000 to RM 10,000 to get their cars back.
Popular models that are targeted by these syndicates include the king of the road, the Perodua Myvi, as well as the likes of the Toyota Vellfire, Ford Ranger, Toyota Hilux and Proton Wira.
If you come across terms such as Kereta JT or Jual Terus (direct sales), Kereta Piang, Piang Lari Bank or Kereta Murah, itās likely these are stolen cars with either duplicated license plates being advertised by the syndicates.
Speaking to The Star, one of the victims, Nasrul, shared screenshots of his stolen Toyota Hiace brazenly advertised on an online platform.
Even the humble Proton Wira is still in high demand for parts.
A friend of the victim tried approaching the seller but it was claimed the van has already been sold. āThey didnāt put the price but they stated the vanās years of release,ā Nasrul said. He added that the man who stole his car was actively posting other vehicles for sale as well on Facebook and Telegram.
Furthermore, many have claimed that these syndicates were able to provide grants for the stolen vehicles. Most of them are fake and could only be detected if authorities compared the chassis and engine serial numbers with the records online.
Another victim explained that most luxury cars have their chassis numbers in hard-to-reach points on the car, making it difficult for authorities to inspect it without a hoist or going underneath the car.
Therefore, the thieves arenāt concerned with roadblocks.
The Starās report ends with the police assuring a response to requests for comments on the cases.
āBetter late than never.ā Some despise it, others begrudgingly agree with it but he swears by itā¦ much to the chagrin of everyone around him. That unfortunately stems from all of his project cars not running most of the time, which in turn is testament to his questionable decision-making skills in life. A culmination of many wrongs fortunately making a right; much like his project cars on the rare occasions they run, heās still trying to figure out if another project car is the way to go.
