Listin Diario political analyst Orlando Gil today speculates how far back the complicity of police officers in the mafia of stolen vehicles can be traced. “If there are so many vehicles being returned now, it means there were many recovered without their owners finding out, and still more whose vehicles were misappropriated. It is known that the usurpation of the vehicles, including luxury SUVs, had become a scourge and there are statistics that establish which brands were the most targeted. The authorities, according to Gil, even knew the modus operandi of the robbers. Nevertheless, nobody can recall if there were any reports of unofficial recovery operations, when such a high number of vehicles makes it apparent these recovery operations were successful. Neither are there any reports of the dismantling of car-theft gangs or widespread arrests, he writes. Gil further speculates that this is an important point because it leads to very serious suppositions. “For example, that these were not normal robberies, made by common delinquents, but actions led by villains from within the institution. In this sense, it would be necessary to find how the SUV or the pick-up truck ended up in the hands of someone else…”
Gil also writes that it would be worthwhile to know if the illegal possessor of the vehicle was the same person who recovered it, or if it was offered to him, because in each case the mafias would act differently. Likewise, he writes of the need to determine if any money changed hands in exchange for the recovered vehicles. He speculates “that there could have been gangs who enjoyed protection that enabled them to steal luxury vehicles that were later passed on to the officers.” He feels one cannot discard the notion that there was an a la carte service, either, meaning that the interested party could specify the type of vehicle he wanted. Gil explains further that from the sample of recovered vehicles, it is apparent that luxury vehicles were preferred.
Gil says that if these matters are not clarified and put into evidence, the wrongdoing will not come to an end and may resurface in the future.
“The solution is not to shovel dirt over it. On the contrary, the problem must be brought to the forefront of everyone’s attention, so that there may be a true investigation that causes only the wholesome fruit remain in the bowl,” he concludes.