Motorcycle thieves busted, 18 bikes recovered

The police have put the brakes on a gang of motorcycle thieves as they detained 21 people, mostly school students, and recovered 18 stolen machines.

The six-day operation, dubbed ‘Operasi Lejang’, began on April 25 in SeberangPerai Tengah (SPT).

Penang police deputy chief Abdul Rahim Jaafar said the suspects, aged between 13 and 25, were members of gangs which specialised in stealing motorcycles.

“We formed a special team to bust these gangs because there was a rise in the number of motorcycle thefts in SPT.

“With the arrest, we believe 17 cases of motorcycle theft has been solved,” he said, adding that the ‘modus operandi’ of the suspects was to use Allen keys to steal the machines.

“Later, the machines are dismantled before their frames are disposed in the river,” he said.

Abdul Rahim said four of the teenage suspects tested positive for drugs while five others had previous records for theft and drug-related offences.

Meanwhile, the police want to contact two siblings to facilitate investigations into an incident where a policeman was attacked by a group of youths at a restaurant in Permatang Pauh on April 30.

Abdul Rahim said the police had so far, detained four suspects, aged between20 and 25, and seized an assortment of weapons believed to have been used in the attack.

The 29-year-old policeman serving in Sabah came here for a holiday when he was attacked by the group while drinking with friends at the restaurant.