IBC assists joint police forces in stopping international car theft ring

The Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC) announced on Friday that it has helped assist joint police forces in thwarting an international car theft ring.

“Today, after months of investigative work, police have announced the arrest of close to 20 individuals allegedly associated with the theft of 211 high-end vehicles,” IBC said in a press release. “The vehicles, with an estimated value of $11 million, are alleged to have been stolen throughout the Greater Toronto Area.”

IBC investigators in Ontario, Montreal and Halifax, working with regional law enforcement agencies, RCMP and Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), were able to identify the recovered stolen vehicles and their rightful owners, the release said, adding that the stolen vehicles were bound for “lucrative international markets in West Africa.”

Law enforcement agencies that were instrumental in the arrests included the Toronto Police Service and the York, Halton and Peel police services, along with the RCMP, CBSA and CN Rail police, said Rick Dubin, vice president, investigative services, IBC.

IBC investigators also assisted the CBSA and U.S. Department of Homeland Security investigators, as well as customs authorities in Spain and Belgium, to identify and intercept containers holding stolen vehicles, enabling their return to Canada. Since 2008, in partnership with CBSA, IBC has identified and seized over $60 million worth of stolen vehicles at ports, IBC added.

“The enormous profits in auto theft attract organized crime,” Dubin said in the release. “Investigations leading to arrests, such as these significantly interfere with these criminal operations. IBC is committed to supporting our law enforcement agencies in their fight against auto theft, and other insurance crimes so that honest policyholders aren’t the ones affected.”

Auto theft occurrences increased slightly in 2014 after several years of decline, IBC reported.