Halton Police
Lamborghini, Ferrari, Porche, and Maybach are just some of the names of vehicles that the Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS) have recently recovered through their investigative efforts.
Over the past summer, the HRPS Regional Fraud Unit was looking into a group of shady businessmen who turned out to be three thieves impersonating representatives of a legitimate luxury vehicle retailer.
Police say, "This group attended several dealerships throughout the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) where they fraudulently obtained several high-end vehicles."
"The sophistication of this particular scam and exceptional quality of the documents they produced enabled the group to carry out similar frauds at other GTA and southern Ontario area dealerships."
HRPS launched "Project Luxe" which was an extensive investigation to take down this, what they identified as "highly-organized group."
The project was a success, and across the six vehicles they collected, they recouped more than $1.6 million in losses. To put that in perspective, the last recovery took 17 vehicles to recover $1.7 million in losses.
Police say the following vehicles were recovered in Project Luxe:
- 2023 Maybach GLS600 (valued at over $300,000)
- 2020 Lamborghini Urus (also valued at over $300,000)
- 2021 Ferrari F8 Spider (valued at $600,000)
- 2023 Porche 911 Turbo (valued at more than $225,000)
- 2017 Mercedes E400 (Valued at more than $60,000)
- 2021 Dodge Durango (Valued at more than $60,000)
Halton Police have also provided photographs for some of the recovered cars:
Halton Police
The police obtained search warrants this month and seized evidence at locations around the GTA.
As a result of that evidence, the following three individuals were arrested and charged in connection to the investigation:
- Enoch JOHNSON (40 years) of Mississauga is charged with Possession of Property Obtained by Crime over $5000
- Ahmad AMIRI (29 yrs) of Oakville is charged with Possession of Property Obtained by Crime over $5000
- Issac Osunde IYAMU (27 years), with no fixed address, is charged with Possession of Property Obtained by Crime over $5000 (5 counts) and Fraud over $5000
The Halton Regional Police Service reminds members of the public that there are steps they can take to help prevent fraud when selling your vehicle.
- Exercising common sense and good judgement in dealings with any prospective buyers and throughout the process.
- If the situation makes you feel uneasy, approach it cautiously. Be mindful that scammers often use high-pressure tactics to have you enter into a sale before you can exercise your due-diligence.
- Ideally, secure payment before you transfer ownership. When you accept any form of payment, verify it with the issuing bank (don’t rely on your own bank, if different). Although your bank may accept a cheque or money order, the payment sometimes doesn’t clear for several days (or weeks).
- Verify the buyer’s identity with a driver’s licence, and one other form of identification (be sure they include name and address).
- Be cautious when engaged by distant buyers. Although not necessarily scammers, be wary of anyone who makes an offer to buy your car sight unseen or a sale in which someone else who arrives to pick it up and complete the transaction.
Anyone with information regarding this investigation is asked to contact the HRPS Regional Fraud Unit at 905-825-4777.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers. "See something? Hear something? Know something? Contact Crime Stoppers" at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca.
