Police in B.C. arrest 2 men after $2.5M worth of stolen vehicles recovered
![Vancouver port trucking Trucks carrying cargo containers arrive at the Port of Vancouver Centerm container terminal, in Vancouver, on Friday, October 14, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck](/content/dam/ctvnews/en/images/2024/3/24/vancouver-port-trucking-1-6820031-1711281050352.jpg)
Two men from Metro Vancouver are facing more than a dozen charges each after police recovered 29 stolen vehicles, many of them found in shipping containers at British Columbia ports.
Investigators say the vehicles, which included Range Rovers and newer-model pickup trucks, were stolen from across the Lower Mainland region in recent months, using what police described as sophisticated technology.
Court records show 29-year-old Mohaned Wael Ozor and 20-year-old Omar Wael Ozor are each facing 14 charges related to auto theft, possession and trafficking of stolen property.
The two men were arrested in Surrey, B.C., on May 22 with the assistance of an emergency response team.
Police would not comment on the relationship between the suspects, who are scheduled to appear in Surrey provincial court on June 17.
Mounties estimated the combined value of the stolen vehicles at $2.5 million.
"New vehicle owners sometimes assume that built-in, anti-theft mechanisms and new technology means their vehicle is less likely to be stolen," Eugene Lum, the acting officer in charge of the Integrated Municipal Provincial Auto Crime Team, said in a news release.
"The reality is criminals can use technology to find and exploit weaknesses of specific, newer vehicles and steal them without a key fob."
The investigation into the auto thefts began in February and involved officers from Vancouver, Delta, Langley and the Canada Border Services Agency. Fifteen of the stolen vehicles were recovered from containers at B.C. ports, police said.
Authorities are encouraging vehicle owners to physically check to ensure their vehicles are locked even after locking with a key fob, and to install after-market anti-theft devices such as a steering wheel lock, GPS tracker or vehicle immobilizer.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.6930794.1718830568!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
Calls for change to B.C.'s child protection system after disturbing case of neglect
Is B.C.'s child protection system outdated and in need of a major overhaul? The province's representative for children and youth believes so, and that 'a new model' is needed.
Ont. mother loses $6K during Facebook marketplace transaction
An Ontario woman is sharing her story after she lost $6,000 by clicking a fraudulent link disguised to look like an e-transfer during a Facebook Marketplace transaction.
Rapper Travis Scott arrested for disorderly intoxication, trespassing early Thursday
American rapper Travis Scott, whose legal name is Jacques Bermon Webster, was arrested and booked into Miami-Dade County Jail early Thursday morning, county jail records show.
Manitoba hit with five tornadoes last week
Tornado season entered Manitoba with a bang last week.
Train collision in Chile kills at least 2 people and injures 9 others
At least two people were killed and nine others injured Thursday when a train full of passengers collided head-on with another train on a test run just outside the capital of Chile, where fatal railway crashes remain rare.
Senators approve bill to fight foreign interference after voting down amendment
The Senate has passed a government bill intended to help deter, investigate and punish foreign interference.
Gunman in Toronto shooting was not evil, but 'broken' by fraud dispute: wife
The wife of the gunman in Monday's double murder-suicide in North York says she doesn't consider her husband an evil person, but one who was 'broken' by a lengthy fraud dispute that saw their family savings drained.
Illegally brewed liquor kills at least 34 with dozens hospitalized in southern India
At least 34 people have died and dozens hospitalized after drinking illegally brewed liquor in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu, local media reported on Thursday.
Heat warnings blanket the east and in Northwest Territories; humidex temperatures push the mid-40s
Heat warnings blanket Canada's eastern corridor Thursday as the year's first major heat wave drags on, and even parts of Northwest Territories are feeling the burn.