By GENEVIEVE CANTOR
Correspondent
THE Highway Patrol Group (HPG) in Region 10 is stepping up its operations in an effort to bring down cases of car and motorcycle thefts here and elsewhere in northern Mindanao.
Supt. Elizabeth Velasquez, HPG director for Region 10, announced this even as she noted that the HPG recorded 521 cases of motorcycle theft and 21 cases of carnapping throughout the region since January.
Velasquez said she feared the number of car and motorcycle thefts would shoot up during yuletide, and with the 2016 elections fast approaching.
“The election is fast approaching. They have plenty of needs now,” she said without elaborating.
Velasquez also warned of a possible rise in the number of motorcycle thefts, adding the HPG has noted that thieves were using vans in stealing motorcyles.
She said the usual modus operandi is, the van stops in front of a motorcycle, and two persons would haul it off to the vehicle.
“It’s very easy to chop and sell this. That’s easy money,” she said.
Last month alone, the HPG recorded 17 motorcycle thefts, including five last week, in the region.
Velasquez said Iligan and Cagayan de Oro have the most number of motorcycle thefts in the region.
She said the HPG has launched a campaign against car and motorcycle thefts that includes setting up checkpoints in strategic areas.
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