Toronto police auto theft investigation recovers 48 stolen vehicles worth over $3M

And project paranoid superintendent okay thank you boss thank you staff super good morning everyone uh my privilege and my pleasure to be standing in front of you this morning um as discussed um we’re talking about the results of project Spectre and project paranoid this was an investigation that commenced in April of 2023

Uh by The chono Police Service gun and gang fire enforcement unit it was into a network of individuals involved in Narcotics and Firearms trafficking during this investigation an undercover operator successfully purchased six firearms and more than 200 grams of cocaine the Firearms to my right here three of them being restricted three of

Them being prohibited as a result of magazine size as a result of the information obtained during Spectre members of the services osis unit or organized crime investigative support segwayed into an investigation termed project paranoid this was focused on the trafficking shipping rning and reregistering of stolen vehicles during this project

There was a total of 48 Vehicles seized 20 were seized in a joint effort with Halton Regional Police Service so a special thanks to that service 20 more were intercepted by TPS and Montreal police with the assistance of cbsa uh in the PTO Montreal area five were purchased by an undercover operator

These vehicles you can see behind me um these uh Vehicles were purchased revined and reregistered which is uh uh kind of a first time in law enforcement that this has been done three more Vehicles were located during the execution of search warrants on the takedown on the

Completion of the project for the total of 48 estimated value of all these vehicles it’s approximately $3.75 million during this investigation there were several businesses in the GTA which were identified as locations where other stolen where stolen Motor Vehicles were stored and sold prior to being shipped overseas and or being revined and

Reregistered to be sold domestically in all seven people were arrested and charged and 150 charges in total for Spectre and pronoid the positive result of this project is absolutely due to the dedicated work of the many members of the Toronto Police Service primarily integrated gun and gang task force Toronto Drug Squad as

Well as the osis unit for the vehicle portion this service our service is committed to the safety and well-being of our residents above all else we will continue to work in collaboration with all the impacted stakeholders on finding solutions to this complex issue I I’ll

Now pass it over to Mr Brian gas the VP of Investigative Services for his comments thank you hello and good morning as mentioned my name is Brian Gast I’m the vice president of investigative services at equate Association i’ like to thank Chief demq and uh the Command Staff of Toronto

Police service for inviting us here today and commend them and congratulate them for the phenomenal work that they’re doing in the area of investigating uh vehicle crimes and keeping the community safe uh in Canada a vehicle is stolen every five minutes the vehicles that the organized crime groups are targeting in

Ontario are newer and of greater value than ever before and and greater than any other Province since 2020 the claim costs have increased by 319 % and for the first time Ontario has experienced over1 billion dollar in auto theft claim cost in a single year in

2023 which is up from $700 million in 2022 equit plays a significant role by helping Canadians fight Insurance crimes which includes vehicle crimes we accomplish this through investigative expertise and advanced analytics the investigative teams at Equity works with close collaboration with the cbsa Port Authorities government agencies ciso law

Enforcement agencies across the country uh and particularly the Toronto Police Service Equity investigators are specialized in identifying stolen vehicles providing evidence as expert Witnesses in court assisting law enforcement uh in the search warrant execution and providing training these public private Partnerships create a more effective and efficient way of

Addressing the issue of auto theft by pooling resources and lending our expertise auto theft is not a victimless crime it is not just a property crime beyond the financial impact of Auto auto theft it seriously impacts people’s sense of safety ontarios ontarians are feeling vulnerable the majority are

Worried about how the alarming increase in Olive theft will impact the crime rate in their communities and they are especially concerned for their personal safety and the safety of their families a recent study finds more than 80% of Canadians are concerned learn of all right if you’re just joining us we’re

Listening to an update from Toronto police sharing the results of their investigation into Auto thefts they say 48 cars stolen cars um were recovered seven people were arrested and charged and some really staggering um stats that police are sharing this morning they say a car is stolen every five minutes in

Canada and that has resulted in1 billion doll in auto theft

Members of Toronto’s Organized Crime Enforcement unit provide an update on vehicles recovered with an estimated value of over $3M.

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