KOTA BARU (Malaysia) - MALAYSIA'S car thieves are getting desperate and are even stealing cars parked at mosques, says Kelantan state police chief Senior Assistant Comm I Datuk Abdul Rahim Hanafi.

'These car thieves are so brazen and heartless that they could not care less that these are places of worship'.

'I have ordered my men to bust them,' he said.

However, SAC Abdul Rahim said the car owners were also to be blamed for being careless, as some had left the keys in the ignition.

He said 763 cars and 3,268 motorcycles were stolen last year. Of these, 128 cars and 1,432 motorcycles were recovered.

On the crime rate, SAC Abdul Rahim said police were able to solve 3886 cases out of 7,749 cases last year, compared to 2,935 cases out of 6,191 cases in 2007.

Police arrested 2,492 people last year compared to 2,108 people in 2007.

'I have instructed my men to bring down the statistics and organise more public awareness campaigns,' he told reporters at the Kelantan police contingent here on Monday. -- THE STAR