Three men have been arrested in an auto theft bust involving 20 stolen high-end trucks worth a combined estimated value of $1.8 million. The three alleged auto thieves now face a total of 38 charges.
A joint probe launched by the Canada Border Services Agency and Peel Regional Police’s Commercial Auto Crime Bureau recovered the stolen vehicles after searching a trucking yard in Brampton last December.
PRP Const. Richard Chin said that the Brampton search then led police to an industrial lot in Bolton, Ont. where the stolen vehicles were allegedly loaded up to be sent to the Port of Montreal for illegal international export.
According to a PRP news release, the recovered vehicles were destined for ports in Dubai and Oman.
Two men from Toronto and one from Mississauga were arrested following search warrants executed by investigators on March 26.
Fouad Shakhtour, 62, now faces four counts each of trafficking stolen goods and possession of property obtained by crime. He has also been charged with two counts each of possessing an automobile master key and breach of release order.
Ali Elfawair, 38, faces two counts each of trafficking stolen goods, possession of property obtained by crime, and possessing automobile master keys as well as one count of breach of undertaking and one count of breach of release order.
Both men are from Toronto and appeared in court in Brampton where they were held for a bail hearing.
Harvir Boparai, 29, of Mississauga, faces eight counts of trafficking stolen goods and 10 counts of possession of property obtained by crime.
His court date is scheduled for a later date in Brampton.
News of the recovered stolen trucks comes only a week after investigators involved in a multi-jurisdictional investigation into Canada’s auto theft crisis announced the recovery of 598 stolen vehicles since the investigation began last December.
“In Canada, a vehicle is stolen every five minutes,” said Bryan Gast, vice president of investigative services for Équité Association during the announcement. “Auto theft has reached crisis levels in Canada.”
Auto theft claims have skyrocketed since 2020, up 319% nationally, which prompted the Ontario Provincial Police’s Auto Theft and Towing team to partner up with the Canada Border Service Agency to recover vehicles and intercept them before they’re illegally exported out of the country.
The ongoing investigation, which has been billed “Project Vector,” is being carried out in collaboration with the Sûreté du Quèbec, Montreal Police, and the Équité Association.
Representatives from each agency were present at a press conference in Montreal on Wednesday to give the public an update as auto thefts spiral out of control.
A vehicle stolen every five minutes means that about 135,360 vehicles have been stolen in Canada since the beginning of 2024.
“The majority of vehicles that organized crime groups are targeting to steal in Ontario and Quebec are newer and of greater value than in other provinces,” said Gast.
The CBSA, working alongside SQ, confirmed that after searching 390 suspicious sea containers in the Port of Montreal, 75% of the vehicles recovered had originally been stolen in Ontario.
