Investigators in St. Petersburg continue to pursue a string of vehicle thefts linked to a single suspect, following the case surrounding the Kia Stinger theft. Authorities say a 52-year-old man has been charged with stealing three additional Hyundai Tucson crossovers, a development reported through the Telegram channel of the city’s Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and its Leningrad Region counterpart.
The police released a statement indicating that several criminal cases filed under Part 4 of Article 158 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation have been consolidated into one overarching case. The focus remains on locating the stolen vehicles and determining the full scope of the alleged activity.
On September 14, 2023, police were alerted to the theft of a sportier Kia Stinger in the Pargolovo district. The vehicle was recovered the following day in the Vsevolozhsk district of the Leningrad region. During the investigation, detectives detained a suspect whose garage contained a car with a modified license plate and a device used to suppress GPS signals, a detail that raised suspicions about the broader operations involved in the thefts.
The suspect is also connected to the theft of three Hyundai Tucsons that occurred in December, October 2021, and March and July 2023, according to investigators. The pattern of opportunistic thefts and the use of illegal devices point to a calculated approach aimed at evading locating systems and law enforcement tracing efforts.
In a related line of inquiry, authorities in the Tula region reported another kind of crime connected to manipulated fuel resources. A man associated with fuel card exploitations allegedly traveled through streets selling 17,000 liters of fuel to unauthorized purchasers. This incident underscores a broader concern about the misuse of fuel distribution systems and the potential for interlinked criminal networks to operate across provincial boundaries.
As the investigation progresses, law enforcement officials emphasize the importance of thorough vehicle history checks, robust serial number verification, and heightened surveillance of high-risk areas for vehicle crime. Experts suggest that businesses and private owners alike should reinforce their anti-theft measures, including tamper-evident seals on GPS disablement devices, secure garages, and rapid reporting protocols when suspicious activity is observed. The ongoing process aims to outline a clear timeline of the suspect’s movements, the specific methods used to target the vehicles, and any accomplices who may be involved in the broader scheme.