SUV stolen from Toronto driveway shows up 50 days later — AirTags tracked vehicle from Canada to Middle East, offering glimpse into shipping routes used by car thieves::A Toronto man used location tags to track his stolen GMC Yukon from a rail yard in the GTA to a used car lot in the United Arab Emirates. But despite calls to several police services and the help of a private investigator, he’s no closer to getting it back.

  • @kautau
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    13511 months ago

    Andrew received a picture taken from inside a police car, parked near two containers sitting on a railcar. “It’s definitely in one of those containers,” the officer said in a series of text messages viewed by CBC News. But the York officer said they didn’t “have the authority to open the containers.” Instead, they directed Andrew to the railway’s private police service.

    Andrew said CPKC police didn’t respond to the scene that night and the train carrying his truck took off soon after. “That’s the pinnacle of the frustration,” Andrew told CBC, “knowing that it’s still here, but it’s about to disappear.”

    CPKC spokesperson Terry Cunha declined to discuss the incident, but said in a statement the railway “works with federal, provincial and local law enforcement agencies executing a number of strategies to identify and recover stolen vehicles.”

    Someone’s palms are real greasy here

    • @[email protected]
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      6511 months ago

      "Wait, you expect us to actually do our job :( "

      It’s a PRIVATE police service, the PUBLIC police force shouldn’t have to ask anything from them and should be laughing in their face as they’re opening containers.

      • @SomeKindaName
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        11 months ago

        They should need to get a warrant, but that doesn’t sound too hard in this instance.

        • shastaxc
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          211 months ago

          Yep and judges don’t work nights. Nothing for the police to do in this instance except wait for the next day… And then it was gone.

  • @[email protected]
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    2011 months ago

    >AirTags tracked vehicle from GTA to Middle East, offering glimpse into shipping routes used by car thieves

    Dammit Yusuf!

  • @RainfallSonata
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    1411 months ago

    Who does he expect is going to pay to ship it back to him?

      • @RainfallSonata
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        -1611 months ago

        Would they, though? Wouldn’t they just write it off? I mean, I have no idea what it costs to ship a vehicle from the middle east, but if it involves cargo ships and freight trains, would they bother? Has he got to arrange and pay for it himself and get reimbursed? Just buy a new car. Trying to get it back at this point is over the top. Maybe don’t buy a douchemobile next time.

        • @[email protected]
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          2311 months ago

          Brand-new cars get shipped all the time over oceans before showing up in showrooms, it’s not that expensive.

          OTOH it might be cheaper to sell the car in the middle east and buy a used one on the continent it’s produced on. On yet another hand the insurance might just say “we don’t want to deal with this shit” and pay out: Even figuring out the legalities, paying agents in multiple countries etc. might be more expensive.

            • @CADmonkey
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              311 months ago

              Something tells me stolen cars are shipped in bulk.

        • @ikidd
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          1711 months ago

          They’d absolutely write it off, the shipping would pale in comparison to the effort to clear all the foreign paperwork and then get it back into Canada. And as the owner, you’d want it replaced because you have no idea what’s been done to it in the several months it would take to get it back.

          • @[email protected]
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            211 months ago

            Apparently the shipping wasn’t too much for the thieves. Wonder why they bother stealing a vehicle from Canada and not somewhere closer to where it was going to end up.

            • @ikidd
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              11 months ago

              Maybe because the truck is free for the thieves and costs full price for the insurance company? And if you want to pick peaches, you go where the peaches are, then drive all the way back. There are very few Yukon or Yukon size vehicles outside of NA.

  • AutoTL;DRB
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    1411 months ago

    This is the best summary I could come up with:


    Using Apple AirTags he had hidden in the vehicle, Andrew tracked the 2022 GMC Yukon XL to a nearby rail yard, then to the Port of Montreal, and ultimately to a used car lot in the United Arab Emirates.

    CBC News has agreed to conceal Andrew’s full name and identifying details, as his family fears reprisals for fighting back against the thieves.

    Andrew’s extraordinary efforts provide a rare glimpse into an overseas shipping route used by criminals amid Canada’s auto theft epidemic.

    Parked in the driveway, their SUV’s steering wheel was bent inward — the anti-theft lock still secured — and the driver’s seat was set further back than usual.

    CPKC spokesperson Terry Cunha declined to discuss the incident, but said in a statement the railway “works with federal, provincial and local law enforcement agencies executing a number of strategies to identify and recover stolen vehicles.”

    Wade said in an interview it’s “alarmingly common” for criminals to move stolen vehicles in containers on trains or trucks, then to export them to the Middle East, Europe or northern Africa.


    The original article contains 1,132 words, the summary contains 177 words. Saved 84%. I’m a bot and I’m open source!

  • @[email protected]
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    911 months ago

    Oh… the middle EAST! I first read that as Middle Earth and wondered if Sauron was up to his old tricks again.