Teenagers from Chicago whom police say are part of an organized crime ring which steals cars led police on a chase in several luxury vehicles they swiped from a dealership. The situation left many in shock, including authorities who never imagined the crime spree going on further south and east would become so bad in their neck of the woods.
Thieves are targeting Ford assembly workers in Chicago.
What tipped off police that something was wrong was when people saw the teenagers with nine luxury vehicles, filling the tanks at a gas station. As if that wasn’t suspicious enough, the youths were all wearing masks. Why they thought that was smart is anyone’s guess.
Those teens boosted the vehicles from a dealership in West Allis, Wisconsin which is in the Milwaukee area. Police responded and a chase ensued, the young thieves eager to show what the luxury rides could do on the open road.
Several law enforcement agencies participated in the chases as they wound through several counties. One was brought to halt using Stop Sticks. Others successfully made it over the state line, bringing the chase to an end. Eventually, authorities were able to recover six of the nine stolen vehicles.
Police in West Allis thought they were far enough from the crime of nearby Milwaukee and especially too far north of Chicago to have a heist like this one go down in their city. But we’ve noticed these theft rings are starting to travel to more peaceful communities with lower crime rates, perhaps hoping they can find easy pickings. In other words, there’s no hiding from the theft trend these days.
We’ve seen other cases like this one, although most not quite as extreme. But we expect these theft rings in cities like Chicago will continue reaching out to smaller and less-prepared areas of the country to pilfer what they can.
Image via Fox 32 Chicago
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