Nine men charged with thefts and robberies in pirate taxis

The indictment against nine men aged 21 to 37 years old consists of 300 counts primarily related to crimes of enrichment committed in pirate taxis within the nightlife scene.

This information comes from a press release by the Copenhagen Police.

The men are accused of picking up intoxicated individuals in the nightlife area and subjecting them to crimes of enrichment.

In most cases, the victims have sat in the front passenger seat assuming they were alone with the driver, while another perpetrator in the back seat has observed and obtained the victims’ pin codes or MobilePay codes.

Following this, the perpetrators have stolen the victims’ phones and/or payment cards, which were subsequently used for money transfers and cash withdrawals.

In some instances, the victims resisted, turning the thefts into robberies.

“Based on an extensive investigation of the case, we believe we can prove that the nine men systematically exploited intoxicated individuals within the nightlife scene. More than 50 individuals have lost money or other valuables, leading to charges for a total of 300 legal violations,” said prosecutor Mads Hilleke.

These incidents occurred between September last year and April this year, primarily in Copenhagen, although the indictment includes occurrences in other police districts as well.

One individual, now 18 years old, has already been sentenced to a year of unconditional imprisonment after confessing to his involvement in eight of the incidents. He was under 18 at the time of the offenses, and the court considered his confession and young age in mitigation.