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Thieves Now Use $27,000 “Game Boys” to Play the Ultimate Game - Stealing Cars

I won’t lie, I’ve walked past a car that was left on in some parking lot and thought about just getting behind the wheel and driving up the street a few hundred yards, but I never did, after all, it’s called Grand Theft Auto, and there’s a game for that.
Hands on Car Window 7 photos
Photo: Bastian Pudill via Unsplash
Hands on Car WindowNintendo Game BoyNintendo Game Boy"Game Boy" Used in Crime"Game Boy" Used in CrimeSuspect Activity in Progress
Well, a group of thieves from out in the United Kingdom have taken stealing cars to a whole new level, with nothing more than a Nintendo Game Boy.

A recent article posted by the West Yorkshire Police has revealed the sentencing of three men involved in a car theft scheme that has racked up more than 180,000 GBP (around 245,000 USD at current exchange rates) in value. After being involved in five different thefts, the three men were finally apprehended and taken in for questioning.

How did all this happen? Well, during an attempt to steal a Mitsubishi Outlander from a driveway, someone backed up and knocked over a drainpipe and damaged another parked vehicle. With images from a CCTV recording, police were called and dispatched through the area, looking for the initial Outlander and a Ford Galaxy, the suspects’ vehicle.

After searching the area, the suspects were found, apprehended, and taken into custody. What was most surprising was the fact that a “Game Boy” was found in the suspects’ car in a hidden compartment. Upon examination it was revealed that this was no ordinary hand-held for playing Mario or Pokémon Go, but rather, one used to hack keyless cars in under a minute.

Suspect Activity in Progress
Photo: West Yorkshire Police / YouTube Screenshot
The report also states that police know of such devices, but this was the first time they had actually recovered one. In terms of price, this special edition Game Boy can run their owners over 20,000 GBP (around 27,000 USD at current exchange rates).

To get an idea of the area where this happened, understand that the West Yorkshire Police is fourth largest in the U.K. in terms of size by employed personnel, telling you a bit about the history and demographics of the area. Over the course of three months, May, June, and July, over 30 cases of stolen Outlanders plagued the city. People living in West Yorkshire just ought to stop buying Outlanders.

After a detailed investigation into the case, police found several pieces of proof directly involving the three men in the cases, one of which was footage recovered from one of the suspect’s phones where his is even filming how the device works and giving a sort of walk-through. I’m sorry, I’ve seen enough movies to know that this is a big no no; you don’t film yourself carrying out an act of crime. Sure enough, it only helped sustain the evidence against the suspects.

Nintendo Game Boy
Photo: Creative Commons via Google
At the end of the day, court rulings sentenced one gentleman to 30 months in prison with a concurrent 18-month term due to involvement in other burglary cases, while the other two received 22 months each. Below you’ll also find a video that was posted by the West Yorkshire Police revealing some of the criminal acts in progress, including the video of the device used to steal cars.

Honestly, I’m not that surprised that a device like this was used to hack into cars. As technology turns more and more electronic, it seems that the ability to manipulate said electronics is also growing; it’s not like no one saw this coming.

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About the author: Cristian Curmei
Cristian Curmei profile photo

A bit of a nomad at heart (being born in Europe and raised in several places in the USA), Cristian is enamored with travel trailers, campers and bikes. He also tests and writes about urban means of transportation like scooters, mopeds and e-bikes (when he's not busy hosting our video stories and guides).
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