A man accused of committing almost 90 offences including the theft of 12 vehicles has been arrested and charged in Melbourne's west.
After police spotted the man behind the wheel of an allegedly stolen vehicle late yesterday, detectives from the Melton Crime Investigation Unit and Melbourne Divisional Response Unit executed a search warrant at a home in Eynesbury at about 6.30pm last night.
In a botched attempt to flee, the man unknowingly landed in the hands of waiting police after jumping over a fence.
During a search of the property, police located three key mimicking devices and several sets of car keys and garage remotes.
Police also seized identification, bank and fuel cards in the names of other people, as well as carpark access swipes, a mobile phone, signal blockers and receivers, quantities of cannabis and magic mushrooms, and clothing relevant to the investigation.
Additional electronic devices were also seized from another Rockbank address.
It's believed the 27-year-old is responsible for the theft of 12 vehicles from Williamstown, Sydenham, Docklands, West Footscray, St Albans, Southbank, Cobblebank, Melbourne and Albion. Seven of these have since been recovered and returned to their rightful owners.
He has since been charged with 87 offences, including:
- 12 counts of motor vehicle
- Two counts of attempted theft of motor vehicle
- 14 counts of unlicenced driving
- 13 counts of going equipped to steal,
- Four counts of theft
- Two counts of burglary
- Two counts of handle stolen good
- Two counts of fraudulently alter registration label
- Fraudulently use registration plate
- Theft from motor vehicle
- 18 counts of commit indictable offence whilst on bail
- 15 counts of contravening bail conditions
- Fail to stop on police direction
Further charges are anticipated.
The man from Rockbank was remanded to appear in Melbourne Magistrates' Court today.
Last year, Victoria Police seized 800 key cloning devices, with intelligence suggesting in excess of 10,000 vehicles are being stolen using this technology each year.
Toyota Landcruisers, Corollas, Hiluxs, and Rav 4s among the most targeted vehicles by tech savvy thieves, as well as Holden Commodores and Subaru Imprezas.
While Victoria Police continues to work with impacted manufacturers in relation to this issue, vehicle owners are urged to consider a range of preventative measures to help deter thieves, including an on-board diagnostic port lock which prevents an offender connecting a reprogramming device to your vehicle. These locks are affordable and self-installable.
Other security tips include parking your vehicle off the street and always ensuring your vehicle is locked, even when at home.
More tips can be found here: www.police.vic.gov.au/preventing-motor-vehicle-theft
