Authorities in New Jersey charged 21 people in connection with an international carjacking and stolen car trafficking ring that allegedly involved stealing luxury cars and shipping them across the country and to West Africa. The 16-month long investigation called Operation 17 Corridor recovered just over 90 stolen vehicles.
"The criminals in this ring scouted golf courses, pricey restaurants, malls and suburban driveways to find the specific luxury cars they coveted, working in teams to commit armed carjackings and other thefts," stated New Jersey Attorney General John J. Hoffman. "While fortunately we have not had anyone shot or murdered during a carjacking in this case, we've seen in other cases how quickly things can turn deadly when carjackers carry out the type of armed ambushes this ring committed. We've completely dismantled this dangerous network and charged its members with first-degree crimes."
Over $4 million in stolen vehicles were taken from communities in North and Central Jersey and shipped to West Africa. Members of the theft crew stored the vehicles at locations including short-term airport parking garages, housing complexes, warehouses and shipping containers to make sure tracking devices would not lead law enforcement to the ring.
The stolen vehicles were then sold domestically as well as shipped internationally to Ghana, Nigeria, Guinea, and Gambia, where vehicles of these types sell for prices in excess of three times the market value in the United States.
To view more episodes of Fraud Files click here.