BERLIN, May 22 (Xinhua) -- The Munich police managed to dismantle a large-scale criminal family who were carrying out systematic and strategic burglaries across Europe, German media reported Monday.
The investigation started after two police officers apprehended three young women as they were caught trying to break into front doors in Munich, the capital and largest city of Germany's state of Bavaria.
The police officers who witnessed the burglaries reported that they were all quick, highly skilled and used professional tools for the job.
The Munich police quickly recognised the three young women as experienced professionals and rapidly uncovered their identities despite their forged paperwork. Further investigation helped uncover the girls' family connection to the "Cucina" criminal organisation that break into houses across several European nations.
The three women are deemed to be the family's representatives in Munich and have so far been linked to 13 separate burglaries across the city and are also suspected of having committed several other criminal acts in the region.
The "Cucina" clan are a criminal network linked either by blood relation or through marriage and work together to commit burglaries and thefts. The clan was notably present in Gelsenkirchen, Muenster, Villingen-Schwenningen, Hannover and Frankfurt as well as Spain and Croatia.
The family network is widespread, closely linked and highly successful thanks to their efficient criminal strategies. Reinhold Bergmann, Police Commissioner for Organised Burglary, told Focus Magazine that he believes the clan is currently responsible for one out of five burglaries in Germany. He also went on to state the family are so intertwined that "some of the younger members are even 'loaned out' to other parts of the family."
The Munich police uncovered the family's strong links to Croatia after following the network's money trail and sent three colleagues to Croatia to work with local officials. German newspaper Bild reported that in total around 20 women and notably two ringleaders were subsequently caught in both Croatia and Germany. Jewellery, valuables and 100,000 euros (112,370 U.S. dollars) worth of stolen money have also reportedly been found.
