Government of Canada announces federal investment to combat export of stolen vehicles
OTTAWA, ON, Feb. 7, 2024 /CNW/ - Today, the Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs, announced a federal investment of $28 million to tackle the export of stolen vehicles.
With this new funding, the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) will have more capacity to detect and search containers with stolen vehicles, as well as further enhance collaboration and information sharing with partners across Canada and internationally to identify and arrest those who are perpetrating these crimes. The CBSA will also test available detection technologies that could support the work of border services officers who examine and intercept shipping containers to be exported from Canada with stolen vehicles. This includes exploring the use of advanced analytical tools, such as artificial intelligence.
The CBSA provides critical support to law enforcement partners to disrupt, investigate and prosecute these crimes. The leadership of these partners and their upfront, preventative and investigative work - within Canada and ahead of reaching our borders - is imperative to reduce auto theft overall.
Auto theft is a growing challenge in Ontario, Quebec and across the country. It increasingly involves organized crime groups, and the proceeds of these thefts are used to fund other illegal activities. There is no single solution to this complex problem. That is why the Government of Canada is committed to using the tools and authorities it has as well as to work closely with other orders of government and private industry. Only through coordinated cooperation and ideas from across jurisdictions will we see results.
Building on today's announcement, the Government of Canada is welcoming leaders from all orders of government, industry and law enforcement to Ottawa tomorrow for the National Summit on Combatting Auto Theft. This Summit is an opportunity to take stock of the scope and scale of the auto theft issue in Canada, identify solutions and further collaborate on ways to address it.
The Government of Canada is committed to combatting serious and organized crime, reducing gun and gang violence and keeping our communities safe, as demonstrated by the recent announcement to provide federal support to prevent crime and combat auto theft in Ontario.
"Auto theft is a complex problem, and tackling it requires all partners to do their part. With this investment, our government is acting to prevent stolen cars from leaving the country and support the work of our border officers. I look forward to continuing the discussion with partners on further actions we can take as part of our joint efforts to combat auto theft at tomorrow's Summit."
- The Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs
-- While investigations into auto theft are led by local police, the Royal
Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), Ontario Provincial Police (OPP),
Sûreté du Québec (SQ), and the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA)
are working together in integrated task forces to target organized
crime, including those groups involved in stolen vehicles.
-- The CBSA responds to 100% of referrals from police of jurisdiction to
examine outbound containers at points of export that may contain stolen
vehicles and identify criminal activity within the supply chain.
-- Nationally, the CBSA has increased its efforts, intercepting 463 stolen
vehicles in 2018 to more than 1,800 interceptions of stolen vehicles in
2023. The CBSA's actions have resulted in a 290% increase in stolen
vehicle seizures over the past five years.
-- The CBSA facilitates two-way trade of hundreds of billions of dollars
each year, including the movement of millions of sea containers. Its
resources are strategically allocated to respond to the latest threats
and service needs at our ports of entry. This includes resources
dedicated to the examination of out-bound containers in both ports and
railyards.
-- The majority of stolen vehicles exported are destined for Africa and the
Middle East. Some stolen vehicles also remain in Canada, enabling other
crimes to be committed with the vehicles.
-- Canada has strong laws in place to address auto theft at various stages
of the crime. These include offences that address conduct that precedes
the theft, the theft itself, possession and trafficking of stolen
property, and tampering with Vehicle Information Numbers (VINs).
Offense-related property and proceeds of crime can also be confiscated
under the Criminal Code.
-- The Criminal Code also includes comprehensive laws to target organized
crime, including specific offences and enhanced investigative tools and
enhanced sentencing of offences for violent acts including assault,
assault with a weapon, intimidation and the use of a weapon (e.g.,
firearm) in the commission.
-- In 2023, the Government of Canada announced an extension and expansion
of the ITAAGGV program, with $390 million over five years through the
Gun and Gang Violence Action Fund to provinces and territories for a
variety of initiatives, including support for law enforcement and
prevention programs.
-- ITAAGGV investments are complemented by the $250 million Building Safer
Communities Fund (BSCF). First announced in March 2022, the BSCF
provides funding directly to municipalities and Indigenous communities
to support local initiatives that prevent gun and gang violence and help
young people make good choices.
The Honourable Dominic LeBlanc, Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs, announced a federal investment of $28 million over three years to strengthen the Canada Border Services Agency's (CBSA) capacity to conduct investigative and enforcement work at our borders and to further support CBSA in working closely with law enforcement, other orders of government and jurisdictions to intercept stolen vehicles and identify criminal activity within the supply chain.
With this new funding, the CBSA will have more capacity to detect and search containers for stolen vehicles, as well as further enhance collaboration and information sharing with partners across Canada and internationally to identify and arrest those who are perpetrating these crimes. The CBSA will also test available detection technologies that could support the work of border services officers who examine and interdict shipping containers to be exported from Canada with stolen vehicles.
This investment will:
-- Increase the CBSA's export examination capacity. The Agency's role in
the interdiction of stolen vehicles is the last line of defence before
stolen vehicles are exported from Canada. Over the past three years,
roughly 70 percent of legally exported vehicles from Canada are laden on
board ships at the Port of Montreal, where the number of suspected
stolen vehicle interdictions doubled from 1,769 between 2018-2020 to
3,145 between 2021-2023, as a result of CBSA efforts. Additional border
services officers will be deployed to increase exportation examination
capacity.
-- Enhance the capacity of the CBSA's intelligence program, which plays a
significant role in collecting and disseminating actionable intelligence
across the country. By investing in this area, the Agency will enhance
its ability to receive and act on information from local police across
Canada, and produce intelligence that will result in the identification
and examination of containers of interest for suspected stolen vehicles.
-- Enhance the CBSA's capacity in the Greater Toronto Area to examine rail
shipments containing suspected stolen vehicles prior to their movement
to a port of export such as Montreal. The movement of stolen vehicles to
marine ports for illegal export is a complex and multi-staged process.
Typically, after a vehicle is stolen, it may or may not be concealed and
altered, placed for observation, receive fraudulent documentation, be
transported to a port, and finally, containerized and exported. The CBSA
will use border services officers to increase the Agency's ability and
responsiveness to examine and detain suspected stolen vehicles in the
GTA rail yards, and transfer stations under customs control.
-- Provide additional technical resources and capital funding to the CBSA
to support the exploration and testing of detection technology
solutions, including advanced analytical tools such as artificial
intelligence. Given the volume of commercial shipments to and from
Canada each year, it is not practical to manually inspect each shipment,
especially since the vast majority contain legitimate and properly
declared goods and we must not slow these down. More detection
technology would offer the CBSA potential to detect and mitigate risks
while realizing efficiencies.
-- Explore how new and existing data could be used to support border
activities. This will increase CBSA's capacity to use historical and
current export data, and develop predictive analytics, data mining
capacity, monitoring of patterns, trends and inform business
intelligence that can influence decision making and risk management.
-- Build the CBSA's policy and program capacity required to guide, support
and coordinate investments to interdict suspected stolen vehicles in
Canada. This will allow the CBSA to: monitor performance and report on
the effectiveness of all of the activities, in order to allocate
operational resources as required; examine and assess the need for
legislative and regulatory changes, that could enhance the interdiction
of stolen vehicles over the duration of this initiative, and ongoing.
The CBSA facilitates two-way trade of hundreds of billions of dollars each year, including the movement of millions of sea containers. Its resources are strategically allocated to respond to the latest threats and service needs at our ports of entry. This includes resources dedicated to the examination of out-bound containers in both ports and railyards.
Number of Stolen Vehicles Intercepted by CBSA per Calendar Year
Region 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Atlantic (ATL) 99 69 73 30 100 118 51 188 0
Québec (QUE) 222 269 348 605 816 1,020 1,050 1,204 155
Northern Ontario (NOR) 1 1 2 3 0 0
Southern Ontario (SOR) N/A 3 4 5 2 9 0 0
Greater Toronto Area (GTA) 25 25 69 250 194 229 414 111
Prairies 2 1 2 2 1 0 0 0
Pacific 2 4 11 55 75 10 6 0 0
Total 351 346 463 766 1,244 1,345 1,348 1,806 266
-- Over 500 Stolen Cars Recovered
-- CBSA prevents 72 stolen vehicles from being smuggled out of Port of
Montreal
-- Government of Canada announces federal support to prevent crime and
combat auto theft in Ontario
-- Government of Canada Announces National Summit on Combatting Auto Theft
-- Justice and Public Safety Ministers conclude productive meeting focused
on joint priorities
-- Government announces $390 million to help stop crime and violence
-- Government takes action to prevent gun violence with $250 million
Building Safer Communities Fund
SOURCE Canada Border Services Agency
