Man charged with keyless car thefts worth over £600,000

A man from Spalding has been charged with a series of keyless car thefts including one from Melton.

Karolis Tauckela, 27, was arrested in Haslingfield, near Cambridge, in the early hours of Wednesday morning (19th June) by road policing officers.

Tauckela has been charged with twelve incidents including the theft of a BMW 530D from Byron Way, Melton on 14th June.

On Friday (21 June), he was charged with conspiracy to steal motor vehicles estimated to exceed £600,000 within Cambridgeshire, Leicestershire and Lincolnshire between August 2023 and June 2024, handling stolen goods and going equipped for theft – namely being in possession of two vehicle frequency relay devices and an antenna booster.

The man was arrested by officers from the roads policing unit. Photo: Leicestershire Police/File Photo

Tauckela, of Cross Street, Spalding, Lincolnshire, appeared at Cambridge Magistrates’ Court on Friday where he was granted bail by magistrates to appear at Cambridge Crown Court on 19 July.

He has been made subject of strict bail conditions to surrender his passport to police, wear an electronic tag and must adhere to a curfew between 9pm and 6am.

The charges relate to the below thefts and attempted thefts:

1. Theft of a BMW X4 from Burghley Close, Crowland, Lincolnshire, on 6 August

2. Attempted theft of a Volvo XC90 from Osier Road, Spalding, Lincolnshire, on 28 February

3. Attempted theft of an Audi Q8 from Woolrom Wygate, Spalding, Lincolnshire, on 28 February

4. Theft of an Audi Q5 from Larkspur Way, Spalding, Lincolnshire, on 28 February

5. Theft of a BMW X4 from Carrington Close, Crowland, Lincolnshire, on 28 February

6. Attempted theft of a BMW X5 from Westerly Way, Spalding, Lincolnshire, on 28 February

7. Theft of a BMW 330E from Spalding Road, Pinchbeck, Lincolnshire, on 5 June

8. Theft of a BMW 330E from Glenfields North, Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire, on 8 June

9. Theft of a Mercedes GLE from Snowley Park, Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire, on 13 June

10. Theft of a BMW 530D from Byron Way, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire, on 14 June

11. Theft of a Mercedes E220 from Headlands Close, Crowland, Lincolnshire, on 18 June

12. Theft of a Porsche Cayenne from Orchard Close, Harston, Cambridgeshire, on 19 June