Two Dutchmen Jailed for Shipping Stolen Cars from Belgium

A court in Tongeren-Borgloon has sentenced two men from Amsterdam to 20 and 24 months in prison for their involvement in the theft and shipment of stolen vehicles. The pair were apprehended in February in Bilzen, Belgium, as they attempted to load a stolen Range Rover into a sea container.

The incident came to light when police received a tip about a suspicious individual tampering with a shipping container near a business. Upon arrival, officers observed one of the Dutch nationals exiting the container, carrying tie-down straps, shortly after he had secured the license-plate-less Range Rover inside. A search of the surrounding area led to the discovery and arrest of a second Dutch man who had been hiding.

During initial questioning by both the police and the investigating judge, the two men refused to disclose the purpose of their presence in Bilzen. However, subsequent analysis of their mobile phones provided crucial insights into their activities. Evidence indicated that one of the men was actively engaged in the trade of stolen vehicles, with his phone containing numerous advertisements for cars and a detailed list of GPS coordinates for trackers installed on various vehicles.

Further investigation using ANPR cameras on a vehicle found near the shipping container revealed a pattern of border crossings, with the car consistently following vehicles that had been reported stolen in the Netherlands or Germany. Prosecutors stated that the accused men were responsible for collecting traced and stolen vehicles from abroad, subsequently loading them into shipping containers in Belgium for international transport.