Three suspects are facing charges connected to a test driving vehicle theft investigation.
The cases all took place at dealerships in the GTA, including Halton. The suspects in these thefts used fraudulent identities and in many cases took advantage of current COVID-19 precautions to secure unescorted test drives and steal vehicles. In some cases, when the test drive was escorted by a sales representative, a staged collision was orchestrated in order to complete the theft. During this time primarily Mercedes products were targeted. Read more here.
An investigation was members of the Halton Regional Police (HRPS) Oakville Criminal Investigations Bureau in collaboration with the Peel Regional Police and Hamilton Police Service.
18-year old Azad Sandhu of Brampton and 20-year old Steven Singh of Mississauga were arrested over the weekend. Search warrants were executed at two Brampton residences and on one vehicle. Investigators seized a second vehicle (stolen from an Oakville dealership), approximately 450 grams of fentanyl, 45 grams of crack cocaine, a quantity of suspected Xanax tablets and approximately $10,000 (in photo above).
Sandhu has been charged with:
- Theft of motor vehicle (3 counts)
- Possession of a counterfeit mark (false identity documents)
Singh has been charged with:
- Theft of motor vehicle (8 counts)
- Utter forged documents (8 counts)
- Possession of counterfeit mark (false identity documents)
- Possession for the purpose of trafficking (3 counts- Fentanyl, Xanax, Cocaine)
Both Sandhu and Singh were held in custody pending a bail hearing.
The theft of motor vehicle and related charges are in connection with incidents that occurred in Halton, Peel, Hamilton, and South Simcoe.
A third suspect, a 23-year old Toronto resident, was arrested back in October. HRPS investigators also executed a warrant at a residence in Toronto.
Multiple items were seized at that time including:
- A Mercedes vehicle stolen from Hamilton
- Stolen Ontario dealer plates
- Fraudulent Ontario and Quebec Driver’s Licences
- Approximately $3000
They were charged with the following:
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime (over $5000)
- Possession of Property Obtained by Crime (under $5000) (2 Counts)
- Tampering with Vehicle Identification Number
- Possession of a Counterfeit Mark (4 counts)
Anyone with information in regards to these investigations is asked to contact Detective Omar Nadim of the 2 District Criminal Investigations Bureau 905-825-4747 ext. 2306.
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.
