Eleven people are facing 96 theft-related charges after York Police recovered 52 stolen vehicles worth more than $3.2 million as part of a four-month investigation, police said this week.
Dubbed “Project Mamba,” the investigation uncovered “a group of criminals” storing stolen vehicles in residential areas throughout York Region, greater Toronto, and southwestern Ontario, York Regional Police said in a press release.
Six search warrants were executed in December and January at locations across Ontario, including in Vaughan, Toronto, London, Cambridge, and Bradford, police said. The warrants resulted in 96 charges, including theft of a vehicle and possession of property obtained by crime, against 11 people ranging between 20 and 64 years old.
“The prolific crime group was targeting high-end vehicles and trafficking them with planned destinations as far away as Azerbaijan and Georgia,” police said in the release.
The investigation, which is ongoing, kicked off last October and was headed by investigators with the York Regional Police Auto Cargo Theft Unit, with assistance from the Canada Border Services Agency and Équité Association, an organization that works to eradicate insurance fraud and crime.
Two 20-year-old Scarborough men face a litany of charges in connection with the investigation. Zain Afzal has been charged with eight counts of theft of a motor vehicle, nine counts of trafficking in property obtained by crime, 15 counts of possession of property obtained by crime, and one count each of possession of an automobile master key, and possession of break-in instruments.
Arpan Dutta has been charged with four counts of theft of a motor vehicle, four counts of trafficking in property obtained by crime, and five counts of possession of property obtained by crime.
Andrey Pokrovskiy, 57, of Newmarket faces eight counts each of trafficking in property obtained by crime, and possession of property obtained by crime.
London resident Darren Proulx, 56, faces two counts each of trafficking in property obtained by crime, and possession of property obtained by crime as well as one count each of storing ammunition carelessly, possession of a substance for trafficking, and unlawfully possessing a substance.
Cambridge resident Mohammad Hadi, 35, and Sadkoul Derman, 54, of Kitchener, both face two counts each of trafficking in property obtained by crime, and possession of property obtained by crime, while Sanan Abbasov, 64, of Bradford faces one count of each charge.
Auto Thefts on the Rise
According to a report from the Équité Association, a vehicle is stolen every five minutes in Canada. Vehicle thefts rose 50 percent in Quebec, 48.3 percent in Ontario, 34.5 percent in Atlantic Canada, and 18.35 percent in Alberta in 2022.SUVs and trucks are stolen more often than sedans, with the Honda CR-V topping the Équité Association’s list of the top 10 vehicles stolen in 2022. The Dodge RAM 1500 Series, the Ford F150 series, the Lexus RX Series, and the Toyota Highlander rounded out the top five most stolen vehicles.
The Honda Civic, the lone car on the list, took the sixth spot, followed by the Jeep Grand Cherokee, the Land Rover Range Rover, the Chevrolet/GMC Silverado/Sierra 1500 series, and the Jeep Wrangler.
Ottawa this week has announced a summit will be held in the nation’s capital Feb. 8 in a bid to address the rising number of auto thefts in Canada’s largest cities.
Much of the auto theft stems from organized crime, the government said in a press release, which described the operations as “highly lucrative” and “highly sophisticated” with theft rings operating coast-to-coast.
The summit will include municipal and provincial police forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Canada Border Services Agency, and auto companies as well as federal and provincial politicians.
