Police in the Canadian city of Mississauga have recovered eight stolen vehicles, including two Mercedes makes and six Honda CRV models, estimated to be worth approximately $650,000 in total.
The cars were being shipped to Ghana. Several of the cars have since been returned to their owners, while the police have issued a call for more information.
Ghana is fast becoming a destination for stolen cars, especially from Europe and America. An investigation by Mariana van Zeller for the National Geographic Channel exposed a sophisticated car smuggling syndicate traced to Ghana.
In December 2022, the Economic and Organized Crime Office (EOCO) retrieved 37 vehicles suspected to have been stolen from the United States of America (USA) and Canada. The operation, carried out in collaboration with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), was based on an intelligence-led approach.
The vehicles were recovered from garages in Ghana on December 9, 2022, and the suspects have since been questioned and granted bail.
The Ghanaian syndicate is considered to be at the pinnacle of the international car theft ring, making the most money from a criminal enterprise that sees cars belonging to people in America stolen and shipped over six thousand miles away from their owners.