Winnipeg man, 23, charged after 'sophisticated' interprovincial auto theft ring busted: justice minister
2 criminal organizations used Manitoba as a 'hub for laundering stolen vehicles,' says Matt Wiebe
A Winnipeg man faces dozens of charges after stolen high-end vehicles with an estimated value of about $1 million were recovered in what Manitoba's justice minister calls one of the largest auto theft fraud cases in the province's history.
What's alleged to be a major interprovincial auto theft operation was busted thanks to a joint effort by Winnipeg police and Manitoba Public Insurance, in an investigation dubbed Project Buyer Bee Aware, Justice Minister Matt Wiebe said at a Friday news conference.
The 17 vehicles recovered were mainly high-end models, including Mercedes-Benz, Jaguar and Lexus models, and were stolen between January 2021 and March 2024, Winnipeg police Supt. Cam Mackid said. Sixteen of the vehicles are believed to have been stolen from Ontario.
Investigators used technology developed by the public insurer to detect a "sophisticated VIN cloning scheme" — where thieves copy the vehicle identification number, or VIN, from a legally registered car and attach it to a stolen vehicle, said Wiebe. They were then able to expose two separate criminal organizations, he said.
"These organizations were using Manitoba as a hub for laundering stolen vehicles and then selling them to dealerships in the city of Winnipeg and to private citizens," said Wiebe, who is also the minister responsible for MPI, a provincial Crown corporation.
Last April, while searching a home in Winnipeg and another in the rural municipality of Springfield, just east of the city, police found equipment and other materials needed to alter a vehicle's identification number, Mackid said. Those searches led to an arrest.
A 23-year-old Winnipeg man faces 68 charges, including 18 counts of tampering with a vehicle identification number, 18 counts of possessing a forged document, 14 counts of fraud over $5,000 and 17 counts of possessing property obtained by crime over $5,000, Mackid said.
Mackid would not elaborate on the equipment that police found, but said they believe the organizations used "various levels" of VIN cloning techniques.
The investigation into the auto theft operation is still underway, and more arrests and seizures are expected as police look for connections in other provinces, he said.
"Any time we see this level of criminality taking place, especially interprovincially, there's going to be some level of organization between different people in different provinces."
He encouraged anyone planning to buy a used vehicle to look for red flags in its ownership history, and to get an inspection by a mechanic.
