They owned their cars for years. Now Ontario police say they're stolen property

Wayne and Mona Evoy have an empty space in their garage, and a hole in their hearts.

The shiny, black 1934 Ford Coupe was more than just a car to the Napanee, Ont., couple: It was an escape.

"Wayne's wanted one of those his whole life," said Mona. "It was meant for him to take me to get ice cream. Just to go for nice drives at night, and on the weekends. Something to enjoy now that the kids were grown, and we had time for ourselves.

"Date night at Dairy Queen," she adds, with a smile. 

The car was purchased after years of scrimping and saving for $30,000 cash in June 2021. 

At first, it didn't run very well, but Wayne spent endless hours tinkering in the garage. He got it safetied, plated and insured. And the Ontario government-issued ownership slip sat in a little pocket on the driver's door — if anyone cared to ask.

The Evoys never had reason to suspect anything was amiss with their dream car — until an Ontario Provincial Police detective arrived at their door this past July, informing them they were in possession of stolen property. 

A few days later, a tow truck came and carted the Ford away. 

Months have passed, and Wayne is still filled with anger and questions. 

"Why go buy a seller's package and go through all the bullshit, and then three years later, your car gets taken? That makes no sense," he says, his voice thick with emotion.

"After you do a bunch of work to it, switch it over into your name, put insurance on it, pay all the tax on it.... Three years later, they say, 'Oh, that car was stolen.' Huh? That makes you kind of wonder."

Dozens of cars seized

The Evoys aren't the only former classic-car owners left searching for answers. Dozens have been caught up in a sprawling OPP investigation involving more than 200 vintage vehicles.

It was sparked by a December 2023 complaint from Larry Grogan, a Watford, Ont., dealer, who accused his business partner of stealing them. The man is alleged to have transferred the titles into his own name, over a 4.5-year period, at Service Ontario outlets via forged documents, with many of the vehicles then sold on to unsuspecting customers. 

In late May, the OPP charged two Stirling, Ont., men — Robert Bradshaw (the former business partner) and Gary Leblanc — with theft, fraud and forgery. Investigators have been busy ever since, repossessing vehicles from people's garages and driveways.

The police arrived at Roger Major's family farm near Alexandria, Ont., on July 10, looking for his orange 1972 Chevrolet Cheyenne pickup — a truck he had owned for more than four years. 

"They handed me a letter that basically said if I didn't hand it over, I could be charged with possession of stolen goods," said Major. "So I didn't have much of a choice but to let him take it."

Soon after, Major's former truck was sitting in Grogan Classics' showroom, listed for sale.

"He offered it to me for $40,000, plus $2,500 for the towing and storage fees," said Major. "I said, 'That's just right out of my price range.' It doesn't make any sense right now to buy the truck twice."

Major says his efforts to obtain more information from police, the Ontario government and his insurance company have been largely futile. 

"I was confused and I still am," he says. "Like, no one has ever been able to give me a clear answer as to how this thing is illegal, how it's stolen."

Police refuse comment

CBC News' requests for interviews with lead investigators, Det. Const. Tim Symington and Rob Carruthers, were turned down by the OPP. And the force declined to answer written questions — or even clarify basic facts, like the exact number of vehicles involved, or how many have been recovered thus far. 

"As this remains an active investigation and is currently before the courts, it would be inappropriate to provide further details or information," an OPP spokesman wrote in an email.

(A third man, Michael McCrory of Central Hastings, Ont., was arrested in connection with the case on Sept. 18, and now faces charges of theft, fraud, forgery and possession of stolen property.)

It's a sharp contrast to the press release, photos and video provided to the media when the arrests were made in May, and the force trumpeted the recovery of 45 vintage vehicles worth $3 million.

Both Larry Grogan and his lawyer also declined to be interviewed or answer written questions. 

The dearth of information about the case has been fuelling online speculation. And Grogan, through his lawyer, has issued legal warning letters to members of a Facebook group, Victims of Classic Car Theft Ring, threatening to sue for libel. 

Many also question the Ontario government's role in the saga. In the spring of 2023, at least 30 owners of classic cars now declared stolen received letters from the Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery, apologizing for a "processing error" that saw title to the vehicles "mistakenly" transferred to Grogan's dealership. New slips were enclosed, and the owners were instructed to destroy their old ones because they were no longer valid.

Maria Cruciano and her husband Jim White bought a 1957 Chevrolet from Robert Bradshaw in February 2023. After storing it and making repairs over the winter, they went to register the car in early June, only to discover it was now listed as belonging to Grogan Classics. 

White called Grogan, who explained that there had been an error. Grogan offered to sign over the ownership slip and courier it to Bradshaw. White picked it up the next day and registered the car in his name. (Cruciano and White provided CBC News with a copy of the signed slip and phone records documenting the call to Grogan's dealership.)

Yet the Chevy was still declared stolen six months later. The OPP seized and returned the car to Grogan in July.

"[Grogan] absolutely knew our car had been sold," said Cruciano. "We spoke with him. He signed the ownership. He couriered it to Bradshaw.

"And you know what the man didn't say to us? 'Holy hell, that car was stolen! That guy can't sell my car!'"

The Ontario Ministry of Public and Business Service Delivery said it is assisting police in their inquiry, but declined to discuss Service Ontario's role, or whether any employees are under investigation.

No hope of compensation

As things stand, the former owners find themselves in an unenviable position — their vehicles taken away, with no prospect of compensation. Their insurance companies won't cover the loss because they have been retroactively deemed to have purchased stolen cars. And they are ineligible for compensation from Ontario's vehicle sales watchdog agency, because Bradshaw and Leblanc were not registered dealers. 

Maureen Harquail, CEO of the Ontario Motor Vehicle Industry Council (OMVIC), says the onus is on buyers to ensure they are purchasing cars from legitimate sellers.

"Make sure you're dealing with an OMVIC-registered dealer," she told CBC News. "Take those few extra seconds.

"Otherwise there are no protections, regretfully." 

A 2021 report by the province's auditor general identified this gap in safeguards for Ontario consumers, and recommended that the Doug Ford government make legislative changes to address it. But the criteria for access to OMVIC's $8-million compensation fund remains unchanged. 

"It's something that is being considered by the government of Ontario. It's within their responsibility to decide whether any additional regulation changes might be required," said Harquail.

It took away the little bit of joy that we had.- Mona Evoy

Mona Evoy, who administers the Classic Car Theft Victims Facebook group, has started a GoFundMe page to try and raise money to hire a lawyer for the former owners. As of Sept. 27, it had raised just over $2,000 of its $15,000 goal.

It has been a trying couple of years for the Evoys. In early 2023, their son Christopher suffered a severe brain injury in a traffic accident. He has been in care ever since, learning to walk and talk again.

Through his months in hospital and rehab, the Ford Coupe was one of the few things that seemed to bring him happiness. Mona would wheel him outside so he could hear the rumble of the engine and watch his dad drive by. 

"His face would light up," she said. "It just made his day."

A link to better times, that has now been severed.

"It's been brutal," Mona says, wiping away tears. "And then to have the whole car thing piled on top.

"It took away the little bit of joy that we had."

Jonathon Gatehouse can be contacted via email at jonathon.gatehouse@cbc.ca, or reached via the CBC's digitally encrypted Securedrop system at https://www.cbc.ca/securedrop/