Barely a week after its establishment, the new police squad dedicated to countering auto theft carried out its first raid in the port of Montreal. No fewer than 26 containers were searched on Tuesday, leading to the seizure of 53 vehicles.
“We are very satisfied with this first big joint operation,” says SQ lieutenant Matthieu Pronovost, who promises to carry out several others over the coming months.
In recent days, information had been obtained by investigators about two exporters of stolen vehicles. These were two companies linked to criminal circles.
The dozens of cars were first destined for transit ports in Morocco and Belgium, “to then be transhipped onto other vessels of smaller capacity, which ultimately go to other countries in the Middle East.” East, most often,” specifies Mr. Pronovost.
Earlier last week, The Press also reported that the increase in exports of Quebec vehicles stolen by criminal networks has created a new market in the port city of Antwerp, in Belgium. Auctions of North American models were seized there by the Belgian police during a stopover and resold at a discount to European customers.
Approximately 90,000 cars are stolen each year in Canada, resulting in costs of approximately $1 billion for policyholders and Canadian taxpayers. The Port of Montreal has become a hub for the export of stolen vehicles.
Several stratagems are used to thwart the police authorities. In Montreal, stolen vehicles end up at the port because criminal networks have registered companies that serve as fronts to simulate shipments of goods.
Tougher penalties
All this comes less than a week after the holding of a National Summit on Vehicle Theft in Ottawa, during which the Trudeau government unveiled on Thursday the first outlines of its plan to fight the epidemic of automobile theft in the country.
Among the measures envisaged, Ottawa had mentioned increased collaboration between police and customs officers at the port of Montreal, but also harsher prison sentences for thieves and a ban on the sale of hacking devices.
The Sûreté du Québec also immediately unveiled a new team dedicated to vehicle theft. The cell in question includes 30 resources from the SQ, other Quebec police forces and the RCMP.
“We see it: the prosecutors have their teeth a little longer at the moment, because they see like us that it is a sphere which also fuels crime in general, which clogs up the courts. With the first vehicle export files which will soon arrive at the Court, we hope to have a deterrent effect for thieves,” says Mr. Pronovost.
Without saying that we are going to stop it, we are capable of significantly reducing vehicle theft. We have good political listening and there is a lot of social pressure.
Matthieu Pronovost, lieutenant at the SQ
Many organizations assisted the Sûreté du Québec, including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) and other Quebec municipal services. The Montreal City Police Service (SPVM) also collaborated, as did the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and the Montreal Port Authority (MPA).
Any event deemed suspicious can be communicated confidentially to the Criminal Information Center of the Sûreté du Québec, by calling 1-800-659-4264.
Quebec wants more control
In Quebec, the National Assembly adopted a motion to ask the federal government “to improve export controls on motor vehicles by adding staff and tools to the Port of Montreal.” She also calls on Ottawa to “quickly strengthen the Criminal Code to make the penalties for vehicle theft more severe.” The National Assembly deplores the “stark increase in the number of vehicle thefts” since 2021, while emphasizing that “the phenomenon makes it possible to finance the activities of cross-border organized crime”. She “notes that the port of Montreal has unfortunately become a hub for vehicle theft in the country,” according to the wording of the motion.
Tommy Chouinard, The Press