Two Russian tourists, suspected of stealing and smuggling more than 100 cars in Japan, have been detained by police in the city of Yokohama, local authorities said Friday.

The suspects were arrested in the course of an investigation in Tokyo in April. The Russians ran a used-car export business, but police discovered that at least a hundred vehicles they sold had been actually stolen.

Investigators said the suspects replaced Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) on the stolen cars with numbers taken from crashed cars, which they bought cheaply at special auctions. They later shipped stolen cars abroad, mainly to Russia.
sections: Society