603 stolen vehicles recovered at NY and NJ ports
US Customs and Border Protection seized 603 stolen vehicles at the ports of New York and New Jersey in the the last year. Those cars were recovered before shipped off to buyers in West Africa or the Dominican Republic.
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U.S. Customs and Border Protection had a record year concerning seizures of stolen cars at the port of New Jersey and New York. A total of 603 vehicles worth $36 million, were recovered before they could be shipped to buyers overseas.
Some of those stolen cars were shown off Thursday by Customs and Border Protection at Port Elizabeth. Most are high-end cars, ranging from a $207, 000 Porsche to $91,000 Ram pickup trucks.
These are cars stolen from neighborhoods across the country before being hidden inside shipping containers to be shipped to West Africa or the Dominican Republic.
“Luxury SUV’s for the rough roads of west Africa. Every day, sedans retagged for the Dominican Republic. That demand is fueling violence and fraud right here in New Jersey," said Mike McCarthy, special agent in charge of Homeland Security Investigations.
CBP says they are not only seizing vehicles but working to dismantle the criminal organizations paying for these cars to be stolen. Officials say that four transnational criminal operations have been taken down since 2021.
This past summer, the New Jersey State Police arrested 60 people related to a major car theft ring.
CBP is also cracking down on freight companies who enable this activity.
"CBP has also issued fines on freight forwarders, companies for failure to provide details withing 72 hours of shipment. 0ver 530 penalties worth $1.8 million ," said Port director Tenavel Thomas.
