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Receiving of Stolen Cars

NCJ Number
163201
Author(s)
A Elzinga; R de Wit
Date Published
1996
Length
60 pages
Annotation
This Dutch study mapped the receiving scene for stolen vehicles and car parts in the Netherlands.
Abstract
Interviews were conducted with perpetrators of car theft, supplemented with information from police experts on car theft, as well as auto-theft experts in the insurance industry and the Forensic Science Laboratory. Based on these interviews, preventive and repressive recommendations were developed to address more effectively the receiving of stolen vehicles and parts. The study found that the activities in the receiving circuit for stolen vehicles and parts are mostly determined by the demand for specific makes and types of cars. Similar to the legal car trade, there is a market of supply and demand. The demand for cars determines which types of cars will be stolen, as well as the focus of the trade; the measure of collaboration; the scale of the operation; and whether cars are stripped, new cars are constructed, or the identity of cars is altered. Based on its findings the study suggests a closer watch over the distribution of registration certificates by making them less easy to forge, as well as the procedure for issuing these documents. There should also be an improved recognition of stolen cars and parts by issuing a "not stolen" certificate for used cars, improved marking of cars and parts by manufacturers, a heightened awareness of the problem, as well as the development of more integrity in the buying public and the car trade business; there should also be a stricter monitoring of scrapyards. Other recommendations are the improved registration of stolen cars and improved, more up-to-date knowledge of the market for stolen cars. 3 tables, 1 figure, and 11 references (modified English summary)