48 stolen vehicles seized, 150 charges laid in Toronto police investigations
Officers say 48 vehicles with a combined value of just under $4 million were recently seized as part of an undercover Toronto police investigation focused on the trafficking, shipping, and re-vinning of stolen vehicles.
Speaking at a news conference in Toronto on Wednesday, police provided details on two separate but related undercover investigations, dubbed Project Spectre and Project Paranoid.
Police said Project Spectre, an investigation into a network of individuals involved in narcotics and firearms trafficking, was launched in April 2023. During that investigation, police said, an undercover operator managed to purchase six illegal firearms and a quantity of illicit drugs.
“Information obtained during Project Spectre led to a new investigation focused on the trafficking, shipping, and re-vinning of stolen vehicles,” Staff Supt. Pauline Gray told reporters.
According to Gray, seven suspects face a combined 150 charges in connection with the two investigations.
Police said 20 of the vehicles that were seized during Project Paranoid were recovered as part of a joint effort with the Halton Regional Police Service. Those vehicles, police said, have a combined value of about $1 million and were found at a shipper location in Burlington.
Twenty other vehicles were intercepted by police in Toronto and Montreal with the help of the CBSA and five were purchased by an undercover operator, police said. Three more were located during the execution of search warrants, Supt. Steve Watts said Wednesday.
“During the investigation, there were several businesses in the GTA which were identified as locations where stolen motor-vehicles were stored and sold prior to being shipped overseas and/or re-vinned and re-registered to be sold domestically,” he added.
Ontarians ‘especially vulnerable’ to auto theft
The probe was conducted in collaboration with investigators from Équité, a national organization that aims to reduce and prevent insurance fraud and crime.
“In Canada, a vehicle is stolen every five minutes. The vehicles that the organized crime groups are targeting in Ontario are newer and have greater value than ever before,” Bryan Gast, the vice-president of investigative services at Équité, told reporters on Wednesday.
“Since 2020, the claim costs have increased by 319 per cent. And for the first time, Ontario has experienced over $1 billion in auto theft claims costs in a single year in 2023.”
Gast said last year’s auto theft claims costs were up $300 million from 2022.
“Profit margins are high and historically, the risk of consequences for criminals are low. As a result, stolen vehicles are frequently trafficked in order finance and carry out other criminal activity,” he said.
“Ontario’s population, high-volume of targeted vehicles and its proximity to the port of Montreal make it especially vulnerable.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Statistics Canada reports real GDP grew 0.3 per cent in October
Statistics Canada says the economy grew 0.3 per cent in October, helped by strength in the mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction sector, following a 0.2 per cent increase in September.
Trump again calls to buy Greenland after eyeing Canada and the Panama Canal
First it was Canada, then the Panama Canal. Now, Donald Trump again wants Greenland.
LIVE UPDATES Parts of Ontario under snowfall warning Monday as holiday travellers hit the road
Holiday travellers and commuters could be in for a messy drive on Monday morning as a significant round of snowfall moves into the region. Here are live updates on the situation in Toronto.
King Charles ends royal warrants for Ben & Jerry's owner Unilever and Cadbury chocolatiers
King Charles III has ended royal warrants for Cadbury and Unilever, which owns brands including Marmite and Ben & Jerry’s, in a blow to the household names.
U.S. House Ethics report finds evidence Matt Gaetz paid thousands for sex and drugs including paying a 17-year-old for sex in 2017
The U.S. House Ethics Committee found evidence that former Rep. Matt Gaetz paid tens of thousands of dollars to women for sex or drugs on at least 20 occasions, including paying a 17-year-old girl for sex in 2017, according to a final draft of the panel's report on the Florida Republican, obtained by CNN.
The rent-a-friend industry is booming among Canada's Chinese diaspora
Dozens of people are offering rent-a-friend services on Xiaohongshu, a social media platform also known as Little Red Book or China's Instagram, in cities including Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto.
Dozens of luxury condos and hotels in Florida are sinking, study finds
Dozens of luxury condos, hotels and other buildings in southeast Florida are sinking at a surprising rate, researchers reported in a recent study.
Nordstrom agrees to US$6.25B buyout deal from founding family
Nordstrom said on Monday it would be acquired by its founding family and Mexican retailer El Puerto de Liverpool in an all-cash deal valuing the department store chain at about US$6.25 billion.
Biden gives life in prison to 37 of 40 federal death row inmates before Trump can resume executions
U.S. President Joe Biden announced on Monday that he is commuting the sentences of 37 of the 40 people on federal death row, converting their punishments to life imprisonment just weeks before president-elect Donald Trump, an outspoken proponent of expanding capital punishment, takes office.