Four men were charged with having stolen cars after police busted an alleged West Side auto-theft ring that operated around the city, according to a Chicago police statement.
The men stole luxury vehicles and moved them to a chop shop in the 4200 block of West Cermak Road, where the cars were broken down for parts, police said. The parts were sold for cash, while the stripped-down vehicles were sold as scrap.
Police believe the men stole five to 10 vehicles each week. Harrison Area detectives dubbed their four-month investigation "Operation Pay Back."
Maybe since Auto Theft is one of the two or three index crimes that keeps going up, the shortsightedness of disbanding the Auto Theft Section so many years ago is being reevaluated?