Police arrest leaders of major Ramallah-based vehicle theft ring

The special police unit combating car theft, Etgar, announced Tuesday it had broken one of the country's biggest vehicle theft rings in recent years after arresting its leaders Tuesday morning.

The ring reportedly had stolen 180 cars in Jerusalem over the past three months.

Most of the ring's 18 members are from East Jerusalem, but its leaders are based in Ramallah. The group is suspected of having stolen 17 cars from a Tel Aviv rental car lot, directly across from a police station, during one night in September.

Police said group members replaced the car's original computer under the hood with one they had brought to the scene, thereby neutralizing the car's alarm and enabling them to turn on the ignition.

The highly organized group, which used a lookout, lead car and computer expert, primarily stole Mazda 3s and Skoda Octavias, which are in high demand.