POLICE BUST LATIN AMERICAN HOUSEBREAKING GANG TARGETING LUXURY HOMES

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 17 (Bernama) -- Police have dismantled a Latin American housebreaking gang targeting luxury homes, arresting four members during a raid at a condominium in Jalan Klang Lama here on Saturday (Oct 11).

Bukit Aman Criminal Investigation Department (CID) director Datuk M. Kumar said all the male suspects, comprising three Colombians and a Mexican in their 40s, were arrested in a 10 pm raid conducted in collaboration with the Perak CID and the Brickfields district police headquarters.

The arrests helped police solve four housebreaking cases, with losses totalling nearly RM1 million, he said in a statement today.

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According to Kumar, the group targeted luxury homes at random, carrying out housebreaking activities in the evenings and nights when the occupants were away.

He added that police believed two of the suspects were the masterminds of the gang, responsible for identifying potential targets.

Kumar said the three Colombians were found to have entered the country through ungazetted routes, while the Mexican arrived via Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA).

“Investigations found that the two Colombian suspects had three and six previous records respectively, and had been arrested in 2012 and 2014 in connection with the same offence.

“All suspects have been remanded until Oct 19 for investigation under Section 457 of the Penal Code and Section 6(1)(C) of the Immigration Act 1959/63,” he said.

Kumar said that in the raid, police also seized items, including cash in various currencies, jewellery, mobile phones, and vehicles believed to have been used by the suspects in committing the crime.

-- BERNAMA