More than 300 vehicles were recovered and 20 people are facing charges after investigators busted an alleged auto theft network spanning Canada and several international destinations, Ontario Provincial Police announced Wednesday.
OPP said Project Chickadee began in August 2023 after officers recovered four stolen vehicles in the Greater Toronto Area, allegedly linked to organized crime.
Investigators found the alleged auto theft network involved freight forwarding companies and fraudulent documentation that was used to ship the vehicles to several countries in the Middle East and West Africa, police said.
"What started as a local investigation uncovered a network of international reach, shipping stolen vehicles overseas to markets where they sell for double their Canadian value," OPP Commissioner Thomas Carrique said at a press conference Wednesday. "This is organized crime on a global scale."
Police said OPP and Canada Border Services Agency officers inspected shipping containers at ports in Montreal, Vancouver and Halifax, and search warrants were executed across Ontario and at one Quebec location in October and November.
Officers recovered 306 allegedly stolen vehicles, multiple provincial licence plates, more than $190,000 in Canadian currency and various other items including key fobs and vehicle shipping documents, police said. Most of the allegedly stolen vehicles were high-end, luxury cars, they added.
Police said 20 people, ranging in age from 20 to 64, have been arrested and face 134 charges, including trafficking and theft offences. Two of the accused were on release orders for prior convictions relating to auto theft or driving-related offences, police said.
OPP Det. Insp. Scott Wade added that the investigation is "far from over." Officers will continue to probe the network and its reach, he said.
"We're going to continue that investigation, and some of that evidence will be before the courts — how long they operated, how they operated."
Trishann Pascal, executive director of the CBSA in the Greater Toronto Area, said stopping illegal activities at the border not only makes the country safer, but it also "promotes Canada's international reputation."
"We want Canada to continue to be recognized as having a safe and secure border," she said. "Every seizure sends a clear message."
Among the 20 suspects arrested, two are from Bradford; a 28-year-old man and a 34-year-old man.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Dec. 17, 2025.
