Police arrest suspect involved in stealing motorbikes and selling them on FB

Officers from the Murder and Organised Crime Investigation Division have arrested a suspect in connection with a racket involving the theft of motorbikes from various parts of the country. 

Police said the suspect, who was arrested yesterday in Badalgama, had been involved in a racket where motorbikes parked on the side of roads were stolen. The thieves would then change the engine and chassis numbers of the vehicles, attach fake number plates onto them and sell them to unsuspecting buyers. 

At the time of his arrest, police also found a motorbike that had been stolen from the Lunuwila area and which had been attached with fake number plates. 

Further interrogation of the suspect revealed that the those involved in the racket would put up the stolen motorbikes for sale on Facebook and other social media sites. Based on information provided by the suspect, police found another six such stolen motorbikes hidden in a garage in Morakkuliya, Dankotuwa. They were being prepared to be sold through the above mentioned method. 

The arrested suspect is a 26-year-old resident of Godigamuwa, Badalgama. Further investigations are ongoing.