Among many thefts, a John Deere dealership in Melitopol was completely ransacked, the valuable tractors and combine harvesters taken away. Only problem? They've been deactivated and won't run. I guess the Russians aren't used to modern farm equipment.
Source: CNN
Russian troops in the occupied city of Melitopol have stolen all the equipment from a farm equipment dealership -- and shipped it to Chechnya, according to a Ukrainian businessman in the area.
But after a journey of more than 700 miles, the thieves were unable to use any of the equipment -- because it had been locked remotely.
Over the past few weeks there's been a growing number of reports of Russian troops stealing farm equipment, grain and even building materials - beyond widespread looting of residences. But the removal of valuable agricultural equipment from a John Deere dealership in Melitopol speaks to an increasingly organized operation, one that even uses Russian military transport as part of the heist.
CNN has learned that the equipment was removed from an Agrotek dealership in Melitopol, which has been occupied by Russian forces since early March. Altogether it's valued at nearly $5 million. The combine harvesters alone are worth $300,000 each.
So what happened to the valuable farm equipment? Well, they were equipped with GPS, of course, and tracked to Chechnya, a distance of over 700 miles away.
Some of the machinery was taken to a nearby village, but some of it embarked on a long overland journey to Chechnya more than 700 miles away. The sophistication of the machinery, which are equipped with GPS, meant that its travel could be tracked. It was last tracked to the village of Zakhan Yurt in Chechnya.
The equipment ferried to Chechnya, which included combine harvesters -- can also be controlled remotely. "When the invaders drove the stolen harvesters to Chechnya, they realized that they could not even turn them on, because the harvesters were locked remotely," the contact said.
Here's some of the arseholes caught in the act. Translated tweet:
The occupiers are exporting agricultural machinery stolen in the Donetsk region to Russia. Absolutely officially accompanied by the traffic police.
They destroyed cities and infrastructure, stole grain and products, stole agricultural machinery ...
They also like to steal grain, among many other things. And always put the Russian swastika (Z) on their trucks, which is helpful when you are looking for thieves.
