The police have solved a series of thefts in Munich from 2022 and arrested five suspected perpetrators. In four crimes that the police believe they can prove so far, damage amounting to around a quarter of a million euros was caused. In total, however, there are ten crimes based on the same pattern with damage amounting to one million euros.
According to the findings, the five perpetrators – two Ecuadorians, two Chileans and a Spaniard – traveled to Munich specifically for their crimes. Here they spied on the routes and routines of parcel delivery vehicles. When the driver left his car – for example to deliver a package to the addressee – they broke into the car, using force if necessary, and specifically stole packages from jewelers, precious metals and watch dealers. The loot was enormous – during a theft in June 2022, they got hold of several packages from a gold wholesaler containing gold coins worth 170,000 euros.
The crimes were made easy for the thieves because the valuable cargo was sent like normal packages without any additional security. In addition, the absence of a shipment was often only noticed at a later point in time, meaning that the police were virtually unable to find any clues. Because the crimes occurred over a period of just a few days in June 2022, the investigators soon assumed that a series and an organized gang were the perpetrators.
So she managed to track down the suspects, among other things by networking with other police stations in Frankfurt and Hamburg as well as in Barcelona, Paris and Lucerne in Switzerland, where crimes similar to those in Munich had been committed.
When two members of the gang wanted to go on a thievery spree again in Munich in February 2023, the police were prepared: They were able to arrest them red-handed on Landsberger Strasse when they tried to steal packages with watches worth 170,000 euros from a vehicle. The two, a 62-year-old Ecuadorian and a 43-year-old Spaniard, have been in custody ever since.
The other three suspected accomplices have now also been identified: a Chilean man and woman, 39 and 58 years old, and a 43-year-old Ecuadorian. The two Chileans were arrested in Paris in January 2023 on the basis of an international arrest warrant obtained by Switzerland. They were initially extradited to Switzerland, but the Munich public prosecutor’s office has requested extradition to Germany.
The last suspect was only recently arrested: In January 2024, Munich investigators and prosecutors traveled to Spain and arrested the 43-year-old Ecuadorian near Barcelona together with the “Policia National”. When his property was searched, stolen goods and evidence relating to the crimes in Munich were found. However, most of the loot has disappeared.
When those arrested are tried in Germany, the charges will be aggravated gang theft. The law provides for prison sentences of up to ten years.