2023-09-16 12:21:50
The announcement of the disappearance of self-service electric scooters from the streets of Paris on September 1 was seen as a godsend by some. All summer, the Lime company, one of the capital’s operators, noted a spectacular increase in battery thefts. The company raised the alarm in July. The gendarmes from the air transport research section (SRGTA) took over the case. Some nights, up to 200 batteries disappear.
The investigation lasted all summer. Six people were arrested last Thursday for organized theft and concealment of organized theft. Since July 1, they have spent their evenings stealing batteries from Lime electric scooters.
The gendarmes gradually traced back to former or current employees of Lime subcontractors. They knew the procedure to easily remove the batteries from these machines. In total, nearly 3,000 batteries were stolen, resulting in immediate financial damage of 2 million euros, without taking into account the loss of income due to operating losses.
“The investigations carried out by the Research Section of the Paris gendarmerie under the direction of the Paris public prosecutor’s office, jointly seized with the Air Transport Research Section, led to the identification of two main organizers and four habitual thieves, involved in an organization “habitual thefts followed by a rapid flow of the proceeds of the offense towards Eastern Europe” details the Paris prosecutor’s office. On site, the batteries were either dismantled for their metals or reconditioned for reuse.
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