Riyadh police have arrested five people involved in stealing valuables from parked cars.

The media spokesman for the police said the initial clues for the arrest were revealed in a video that was widely circulated on social media, showing men stealing valuables inside parked cars.

An official said based on the buildings and environment in the video, police concluded it was Marqab district, a few miles away from the city center of Batha. By deploying a surveillance team in Marqab, police identified a gang of five.

The men, in their 30s and 40s, confessed to the thefts, and to robbing people walking along the railway line. They had stolen more than 100 mobile phones from pedestrians.

Police did not reveal the nationalities of the gang members, who are in custody at Batha police station and will be taken to court for sentencing.

According to security sources, most crimes in the Kingdom are committed by illegal residents who have overstayed their visas. Consequently, the government has intensified its campaign against those who have overstayed their visas.

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