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During simultaneous raids at six homes and a business Friday, Fort Wayne police found numerous stolen cars, motorcycles and auto parts, exposing what they believe is an “extensive vehicle theft network,” police said.
The raids were the culmination of a lengthy investigation by the police department’s Neighborhood Response Team, a unit that targets career criminals and deals with unusual cases.
Officer Raquel Foster, a police spokeswoman, said officers executed search warrants at the seven locations, with help from federal agents. The homes raided included three in the 2500 and 2600 blocks of Hillegas Road and two in the 2000 block of Emerson Avenue, Foster said. She was not able to confirm the addresses of the sixth home or the business.
While conducting the searches, investigators came across multiple stolen vehicles and stolen motorcycles, a trailer and many auto parts.
Officers detained and interviewed several people, but no arrests were made. However, charges in the case are imminent, police said.
Foster said the stolen items found Friday are linked to a rash of motorcycle thefts police warned of in late July.
In a two-month span, 18 motorcycles, mainly Japanese-made sport bikes, had been reported stolen. The thefts occurred overnight, with bikes taken from streets, driveways and parking lots of apartment complexes. Police suspected the motorcycles were being lifted or loaded into a vehicle or trailer.
