Cops bust huge Mississauga, Brampton and Halton stolen car ring, arrest 24 people

Four Mississauga men and another four people from Brampton are among two dozen suspects facing more than 300 charges after police forces across the GTA combined to bust a huge international car theft ring last week.

Working together for the past six months as part of a multi-jurisdictional effort dubbed “Project High 5,” police from Peel, Halton, York and the OPP executed nine search warrants at homes in those regions on Jan. 19.

As a result, 24 people were arrested, including five from Montreal, 217 stolen luxury vehicles valued at $11.1 million were recovered and 321 charges were laid.

And police say more arrests are expected as the investigation continues.

The officers, from Peel, Halton and York regional police forces, in addition to the OPP, also recovered a loaded Glock .45-calibre hand gun (with prohibited extended magazine and laser sight), more than $100,000 in Canadian cash, drugs, car forgery documents and instruments, and fraudulent government documents.

Investigators from the Peel Regional Police Commercial Auto Crime Bureau launched the sweeping probe some six months ago after noticing a dramatic increase in the number of luxury vehicles being stolen in the overnight hours from the driveways of homes in Mississauga and Brampton while the homeowners slept.

The scope of the investigation grew as police in Oakville, Burlington, Toronto and other areas of the GTA noticed similar activity in their regions.

Police say vehicles targeted included Toyota Highlanders, Honda CRVs, Ford F150s, Range Rovers and Lexus SUVs.

Once taken from driveways, the vehicles were quickly loaded into shipping containers for export to the United States and multiple West African and Middle Eastern countries, police say.

Police believe those responsible for the thefts forced open the driver’s door and obtained access to the vehicle’s On Board Diagnostic Port. Once this was achieved, they utilized key programming devices to program a new aftermarket key fob.

Multi-Jurisdictional Investigation Takes Down Prolific Auto Theft Group – https://t.co/d4WpiuCHNO pic.twitter.com/RlQ8eOKjEI

— Peel Regional Police (@PeelPolice) January 27, 2022

Peel police Deputy Chief Nick Milinovich said the arrests and seizures are “an impressive demonstration” of collaboration among various police forces and the community.

“It has resulted in successfully dismantling one of the most prolific organized crime rings in the GTA,” he said. “The results are unparalleled. These crimes have impacted many hard-working citizens in Peel and neighbouring regions affecting our community’s well-being. While these enforcement efforts do have an impact, it is critical that they are coupled with crime prevention efforts from our communities.”

Halton police Deputy Chief Roger Wilkie applauded the collaborative effort.

“We recognize that criminal organizations do not care about borders or jurisdictions and that we must work together with our partnering police agencies to tackle this global problem that is affecting so many of our communities,” he said. “These arrests highlight that collaboration and send a clear message that organized crime will not be tolerated in our community.”

The investigative police team also included members from Canada Border Services Agency Mississauga, Port of Montreal – SPVM Police, Equite Association (previously, Insurance Bureau of Canada), Port of Halifax and Halifax Police Service.

Investigators say the theft ring also involved vehicles being fraudulently registered in Ontario and then sold to unsuspecting car dealerships, online dealer platforms and unassuming buyers.

Police recovered the stolen vehicles across Ontario and North America.

Anyone with information on these thefts is asked to call police at 905-453–2121, ext. 3322 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

The following people face a combined 321 charges:

• Samuel Cole, a 63-year-old man from Brampton  (63 charges)
• Amir Qaderi, a 26-year-old man from Mississauga (30 charges)
• Nizarali Qaderi, a 25-year old male from Mississauga (36 charges)
• Bradley Stewart, a 29-year-old man from Brampton  (21 charges)
• Ranvir Saggi, a 22 year-old man from Richmond Hill (12 charges)
• Faramroze Havewalla, a 36-year-old man from Mississauga (2 charges)
• Yuvraj Behl, a 22-year-old man from Toronto  (1 charge)
• Jahid Golan, a 21-year-old man from Uxbridge (18 Charges)
• Akash Sandal, a 24-year-old man from Vaughan (18 charges)
• Sanyam Maini, a 32-year-old  man from Vaughan (29 charges)
• Varun Verma, a 21-year-old  man from Vaughan (11 charges)
• Ara-Rose Roeein, a 33-year-old woman from Richmond Hill (8 charges)
• Balwinder Dhaliwal, a 65-year-old man from Mississauga (10 charges)
• Kelly McCarthy, a 33-year-old woman from Richmond Hill   (14 charges)
• Ronnie Cote, a 30-year-old man from Brampton (5 charges)
• Kevin Miller, a 33-year-old man from Toronto (2 charges)
• Lisa Morairty, a 28-year-old woman from Brampton  (3 charges)
• Zenab Allazan, a 19-year-old woman from Montreal (6 charges)
• Cedric Combray, a 19-year-old man from Montreal (6 charges)
• Ahmed Al-Moussawi, a 20-year-old man from Montreal (6 charges)
• Shane Mundle a 32-year-old man from Whitby (5 charges)
• Levi Shallow, a 52-year-old man from North York (3 charges)
• 17-year-old male youth from Montreal (6 charges)
• 17-year-old male youth from Montreal ( 6 charges)