Teenager car theft ring uses an SUV like a “battering ram” to steal nearly $600,000 worth of luxury vehicles.
Teenage car theft ring costs dealership more than half a million dollars
Police are actively searching for a group of teenagers accused of crudely executing an organized car theft at a Wisconsin Land Rover dealership, where they successfully took off with expensive high-end vehicles.
The wild theft happened on February 18th, when nine teenagers broke into a Jaguar-Land Rover dealership in Waukesha.
They managed to commandeer nine vehicles, collectively valued at more than half a million dollars.
Captain Dan Baumann of the Waukesha Police said that the teenage suspects arrived in a stolen minivan and broke in through the service door early in the morning before the sun was up.
They managed to locate several car keys inside the dealership, then used the key fobs to identify and which cars to steal.
Evidence from CCTV within the dealership captured footage of four of the teen perpetrators.
They were dressed entirely in black, wearing masks and hats to conceal their identities from security cameras, as they ran through the dealership.
Dramatic footage recorded by the dealership’s surveillance system revealed one of the burglars blasting a white Land Rover Velar like a “battering ram” through a glass garage door.
A group of luxury vehicles were filmed speeding out of the dealership like they were in a “Fast & Furious” sequel.
Car theft ring drives away with luxury cars
Amongst the $583,339 fleet they stole, were a 2021 Jaguar F Type R-Dynamic, a 2023 BMW X5 M50i, and a 2019 Porsche Macan.
The Land Rover-Range Rovers they got away with were a 2021 Westminster, a 2023 Sport P440, a 2024 Discovery Dynamic, and two 2024 Velars.
Eight of the stolen automobiles were property of the dealership, while the ninth belonged to a customer.
The theft spurred a high-speed chase by police on Interstate 94 that lasted for 40 miles.
17-year-old Calvin Valentine, was apprehended in Pleasant Prairie after losing control of a $73,998 Range Rover Westminster and crashing during the pursuit.
Valentine is detained at the Waukesha County Jail on a $50,000 bond.
The young suspect faces charges of burglary, theft, and criminal damage to property.
He told police that “he did not know what people would do with these cars,” when he was interviewed.
Authorities close in on teenage car theft ring
To date, authorities have recovered six of the nine stolen vehicles—four within Chicago, one in Deerfield, a Chicago suburb, and another in Wisconsin.
“We believe this to be an organized crime group of teenagers from the Chicago area,” Baumann speculated about the car thieves.
He dismissed any notion that the act was a spur-of-the-moment decision by a group of foolish teenagers.
“This wasn’t just a group of kids that just decided to stay up late one night playing video games and say, “Hey let’s go see if the nine of us can travel two hours away to commit crimes,” Baumann added. “Because that’s not something that normally happens.”
Investigations continue as authorities work to identify and apprehend the remaining eight suspects involved in the dealership theft.
