Kota Kinabalu: Police are looking for two suspects in connection with a string of house break-in cases committed in the city.

The two men are Lean Boon Wui @ Jackie, with MyKad 830409-12-6227, of No 1516, Taman Golden Hill, Jalan Salleh, Tawau and Wong Shin Fui with Mykad 830825-12-5821 of No 111, Taman Jambu, Jalan Sin On, Tawau.

Both of them are believed to be members of a gang that also included two other men and a woman who were arrested last 5 December at a house in Taman Maya, Tanjung Aru.

According to City Police Chief, ACP Jauteh Dikum, those arrested were a 32-year-old male and his girlfriend, 26, together with another man, 25.

He said the arrest of the trio helped police to solve a series of house break-ins in Kota Kinabalu from 23 to 30 November.

Investigations showed that the three of them are also wanted by the police in Tawau, Johor and Kuala Lumpur for similar crimes.

The 25-year-old man had been previously convicted under Section 7 of the Firearms Act for possessing a weapon. Jauteh added that the two men were tested positive for syabu at the time of arrest.

He added that the gang's modus operandi is to force entry by prying open doors or windows of targeted houses when the occupants were not in.

The first house break-in case at Taman Putera Perdana, Menggatal was reported on 24 Nov in which the owner lost RM6,000 worth of items including four laptops, one guitar and one violin.

Based on early investigation, the arrested suspects were involved in eight cases of house break-ins and carted off with a loot that totalled RM180,000 comprising various items. They used a rented four-wheel-drive vehicle on their crime spree.

"So far we only managed to recover around RM70,000 worth of stolen items including the car. We have not recovered all the stolen items yet as many of them have been sold," said Jauteh.

The case is being investigated under Section 457 Penal Code for house-trespass or house break-in.