Police in Canton, Michigan, arrested six men and one woman, all 21 years old or younger, on charges related to a huge car theft crime ring that snagged $1.7 million worth of Ford Bronco Raptors.
Sixteen $90,000-plus Bronco Raptors were lifted from holding lots in the Detroit metro region. Holding lots are found across southeast Michigan as a place for finished products to await transit to dealerships across the country.
The investigation took Canton police 10 months and turned from a simple car theft ring into serious criminal enterprise charges, WXYZ reports:
“Over time, we’ve learned that this is actually like a racketeering case,” said Canton Police Chief Chad Baugh. “They were taking the vehicles and re-tagging them. What that means to us is they were assigning another VIN number to it illegally and trying to get these vehicles registered through an innocent buyer and by that time, that person is already gone with the money and they’re left with a vehicle they can’t drive or own.”
Baugh says the thieves targeted a holding lot on Belleville Rd. and another on Hannan Rd. among others. Police say they were able to recover 10 of the stolen vehicles in states as far as Texas, Arizona, and Alaska.
They also recovered a few Mustangs, an AR pistol, and around $28,000 in cash believed to be made in the sale of the stolen vehicles.
“It makes it very concerning for us because we have to find ways to stop it on the front end so we don’t subject our citizens to pursuits,” said Baugh.
Six of the seven suspects face one count of conducting a criminal enterprise, which carries a potential 20-year sentence. They all caught multiple charges of receiving and concealing stolen property, which can fetch 10 years. The accused are expected back in court on Friday.
Ford has a bit of a problem holding on to its vehicles. Earlier this month, Ford lost 15 F-150s from holding lots in the brand’s hometown of Dearborn, Michigan — ten of them picked up the same day. One million dollars worth of Ford Raptors were stolen straight from the plant last year, with a few Mustangs getting caught up in the scheme as well. And Ford is not alone. Fiat Chrysler lost eight trucks from its assembly plant in 2018 and two Wagoneers were snatched up just last year.