The police in Soroti City are stuck with over 50 unclaimed vehicle number plates recovered from various crime scenes. Despite the successful recovery during coordinated operations, the rightful owners have yet to come forward to claim their number plates, leaving police in a state of challenge.
According to Ibrahim Saiga, the East Kyoga Regional Police Commander, these number plates have been in police custody for an extended period. “We recovered these number plates in coordinated operations,” he stated. The plates have since been transferred to the Soroti City West Division Police in Nakatunya for safekeeping.
Authorities are urging the rightful owners to come and reclaim their number plates. “Owners are requested to present detailed information such as logbooks or national IDs to prove ownership of the number plates,” Saiga added.
He emphasized the importance of community cooperation, urging residents to report any incidents of number plate loss to the authorities promptly. Unfortunately, the issue of number plate theft has become a growing concern in Soroti City. Residents have reported incidents where gangs operate under the cover of night, stealthily plucking vehicle number plates from parked cars.
Engineer Jimmy Echulu, a victim of such theft, expressed his dissatisfaction with the police’s response to these incidents.“ Imagine these criminals have the audacity to leave contact information on a chit placed on top of the car after stealing the number plate, detailing how much one is supposed to pay to recover it,” he lamented.
Echulu recounted a particular incident from last year when he parked his car in his compound overnight. His neighbors heard suspicious noises, and upon investigation, they discovered that thieves had stolen his number plates.
“They jumped the fence to access my home in order to steal the car number plates. I think these guys have a tendency to trail people before they strike,” he noted. Despite reporting the incident to the police, Echulu felt let down by the lack of action.
“Even with the criminals’ contacts available, the police failed to act,” he stated. He called for intelligence-led operations to identify and apprehend these criminals who not only steal vehicle number plates but also demand ransom from victims.
“I was asked to send 180,000 shillings to recover my number plate, which I refused because that would only encourage them to continue their stealing spree. Since I reported the incident, no investigation has taken place, and these criminals are still operating online,” he explained. Over the past two years, more than 100 residents in Soroti City have reported the theft of their vehicle number plates-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
