A vacation bust in Quebec’s Lanaudière area led to the invention of stolen vehicles price an estimated $1 million, provincial police stated Thursday.
The Sûreté du Québec (SQ) says data led police to warehouses final week in l’Épiphanie, positioned about 50 kilometres northeast of Montreal. A stolen SUV from Montreal was first discovered on Dec. 27.
“Warrants have been obtained to test your entire lot and buildings,” police stated.
Authorities then found an array of automobiles — most of that are believed to have been taken from the larger Montreal space — throughout raids that started final Sunday and lasted by way of New 12 months’s Eve.
Get breaking Nationwide information
For information impacting Canada and around the globe, join breaking information alerts delivered on to you once they occur.
Among the vehicles have been already in delivery containers, based on police.
The SQ says 5 SUVs, a tractor unit and different “disguised” automobiles have been seized through the police operation. Provincial and native investigators labored collectively on the case.
No arrests have been made as of Wednesday afternoon, however the investigation is ongoing. The SQ says anybody with data on legal actions in Quebec is requested to name the SQ at 1 800-659-4264, which is a confidential hotline.
“Value determinations can be carried out on the seized materials with the intention to hyperlink it to different theft recordsdata if needed,” police stated.
The bust comes as Canadian authorities work to stem the tide of auto thefts, significantly in Quebec and Ontario.
The nation’s personal auto insurers paid out $1.5 billion in theft claims in 2023, a file excessive, based on the Insurance coverage Bureau of Canada. That 12 months, automobile thefts rose 50 per cent in Quebec and nearly as a lot in Ontario.
Insurers have stated the vast majority of automobiles are being exported by way of the busy Port of Montreal. Round 1.7 million containers moved by way of the port in 2023, together with 70 per cent of Canada’s authorized automobile exports, based on port authorities.
The federal authorities estimates 90,000 vehicles are stolen annually in Canada and lots of the thefts contain connections to organized crime.
— with recordsdata from The Canadian Press
© 2025 International Information, a division of Corus Leisure Inc.
Source link