$6 Million in High End Vehicles Recovered
BARRIE, ON, Oct. 25 2006 – On Oct. 24, 2006, officers from the Joint Forces Investigation, Project Eastbound arrested and charged seven individuals with Possession of Stolen Property, Fraud and Uttering Forged Documents relating to the fraudulent registration and sale of stolen vehicles in Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick. Seven additional arrests are anticipated and a total of 184 charges will be laid.
Project Eastbound, a 14-month investigation, targeted a group who were involved in the cloning or re-“VINing” of stolen vehicles, and the fraudulent registration of stolen vehicles through privately run issuing offices under contract with the Ontario Ministry of Transportation. Re-sale of stolen vehicles took place in Quebec and New Brunswick.
On July 12, 2006 members of the New Brunswick RCMP, in conjunction with the Ontario Provincial Auto Theft Team (PATT) located and seized a total of 24 stolen motor vehicles that had been identified as cloned or with false vehicle identification numbers (VINS). These vehicles were stolen and originally registered as imported vehicles in Ontario, before being re-sold as legitimate in New Brunswick.
On Aug. 22, 2006, 33 search warrants were executed in Quebec by the Ontario Provincial Auto Theft team with the assistance of members of the S�ret� Du Qu�bec, Montreal Police Service and other various Quebec police officers. At this time, a total of 26 stolen vehicles that had been identified as cloned or with false vehicle identification numbers were located and seized. These vehicles were similarly registered as imported vehicles in Ontario, before being re-sold as legitimate in Quebec.
The seized vehicles were all reported stolen between 2005 and 2006. The vehicles included high-end vehicles such as Hummers, Cadillacs, Porsches, and recreational vehicles. These vehicles have a recoverable value of over $6 million dollars.
PATT is a standing joint forces operation under the umbrella of the Ontario Provincial Police, Organized Crime Section, including the listed partners; Brantford Police Service, Canada Border Service Agency, Durham Regional Police Service, Guelph Police Service, Hamilton Police Service, Insurance Bureau of Canada, London Police Service, Ministry of Transportation Ontario, Niagara Police Service, Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council, Ottawa Police Service, Six Nations Police Service, Toronto Police Service, and the Waterloo Regional Police Service.
In this specific investigation, PATT was assisted by the Central Region Crime Unit of the OPP, the Peel Regional Police Service, the Barrie Police Service, Royal Canadian Mounted Police (New Brunswick), the S�ret� Du Qu�bec, Montreal Police Service, and various Municipal police services in Quebec including the Quebec City Police Service.
The investigation is continuing.
A comprehensive list of charges, names, property and court details will be included in the NEWS CONFERENCE Wed. 25, Oct. 2006, 10:30 am. Georgian College, Barrie, Ontario. Room K – 319.
Insurance Bureau of Canada is the national trade association of the private property and casualty insurance industry. It represents the companies that provide more than 90 per cent of the non-government home, car and business insurance in Canada. To view news releases and information, visit the media section of IBC’s web site at www.ibc.ca.
