Twenty people have been charged with 350 offences after a five-month, multi-jurisdictional investigation into hundreds of high-end vehicle thefts throughout central and eastern Ontario and into Quebec, the Ontario Provincial Police announced today.
In York Region alone, 148 vehicles were stolen from residential areas, police say.
"We want to remind the public to take precautions when leaving their vehicles unattended, including parking in a well-lit area or a locked garage when possible,” said Supt. Bryan MacKillop, director of the OPP’s Organized Crime Enforcement Bureau. “There have been hundreds of victims affected and we, along with our partners, will continue to take action against criminals who victimize members of our communities."
The OPP-led Project Shildon began in June 2019 in response to a series of vehicle thefts throughout central and eastern Ontario at dealerships and residential areas, including vehicle owners' driveways.
The accused orchestrated a highly organized operation with multiple people involved in each vehicle theft, with the goal of exporting the stolen vehicles in shipping containers overseas through the Port of Montreal, the OPP say.
Project Shildon was conducted by the OPP OCEB, OPP East Region Community Street Crime Units (CSCU), Service de police de Laval (SPL), Service de Police de la Ville de Montréal (SPVM), Canada Border Services Agency, the Insurance Bureau of Canada, York Regional Police and Ottawa Police Service, with assistance from Halton Regional Police Service and Toronto Police Service.
Members of the OPP Emergency Response Team (ERT), and similar specialty units from numerous law enforcement partners assisted in the execution of warrants last week at locations in Montreal and vicinity.
During the course of the investigation, the investigative team were able to recover 97 of 497 stolen vehicles and interrupt their shipment overseas.
Investigators seized numerous items during the execution of the search warrants, including brass knuckles, stolen vehicle registration cards, items stolen from vehicles, and a variety of controlled substances, including methamphetamine tablets, MDMA, cocaine, ecstasy, cannabis and cannabis plants.
In addition, police seized tools the accused utilized to gain entry to vehicles and replicate key fobs.
Police say the stolen vehicles were destined for Africa.
All of those charged are Quebec residents.
