I will follow this story closely as I am willing to bet that all 17 of the suspects have Hispanic Surnames, and at least half of them are Illegal Aliens
R/ Skip


Task force nets car thief suspects

By: North County Times

SAN DIEGO ---- The San Diego County district attorney and the Regional Auto Theft Task Force Tuesday announced an indictment of 17 auto theft suspects that targeted the North County area.

The four-month long undercover operation was called "Operation Northern Exposure," said District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis.

Of the 17 indictments, 13 of those people are in custody and will face arraignment Wednesday, and four suspects are at large, Dumanis said. Most of the suspects had a criminal history for auto theft already, she said.


RATT Capt. Lisa Wrobel said many of the suspects were from the Escondido area but they targeted the entire North County area. Undercover RATT officers purchased 24 stolen vehicles from the suspects, she said.

Escondido police Capt. Holly Merkel said the RATT investigation coupled with the police department's own special details have resulted in a 9 percent decrease in auto thefts in the city compared to last year.

http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2006/11 ... _28_06.txt