Auto thieves lived in some of the 130 vehicles they stole, Colorado officials say

An auto theft ring operating in Denver stole 130 vehicles worth $3 million to fuel drug habits while living in stolen camping trailers, Colorado prosecutors said.

The 11 people indicted in the case face charges including auto theft and organized crime, the Denver District Attorney’s Office said in a news release Thursday, May 19.

Along with vehicles, the ring stole firearms and committed identity theft to fuel heroin, meth and fentanyl habits, prosecutors said. The crime spree reportedly began in February 2021.

The ring “used electronic key programmers to defeat authorized key fobs,” the release said. They also are accused of breaking into auto dealerships and repair shops to steal keys.

The thieves targeted new and high-end vehicles, prosecutors said.

They tried to evade law enforcement surveillance by driving “unpredictably and dangerously,” and would “ram vehicles, drive over obstacles, flee at high-speed and enter oncoming lanes of traffic” to flee authorities, the release said.

The auto theft ring coordinated its activities on Facebook and other social media, prosecutors said.

A Denver grand jury indicted the 11 accused thieves, mostly in their 20s, on 74 criminal counts, prosecutors said. Ten are now in custody, the release said.

This story was originally published May 23, 2022 at 9:17 AM with the headline "Auto thieves lived in some of the 130 vehicles they stole, Colorado officials say."