OTTAWA — Canada needs to strengthen its port security, among other measures, to reduce the number of stolen cars being shipped out of the country, police chiefs told a House of Commons committee on Thursday.
Pierre Brochet, the head of Association des Directeurs de Police du Québec, told the public safety committee that Canada should have stricter rules surrounding the hiring and security clearances of port security and holding shippers accountable for the content they carry.
“We need to hand over this very important task of clearance of port employees to police services. We also need to guarantee very thorough and impartial record checks,” he said.
Brochet also asked vehicle manufacturers to review and improve the anti-theft technologies they implement in their vehicles.
“It is time for us to take strong action when it comes to address the situation,” he said.
Thomas Carrique, the commissioner of the Canadian Association of Police Chiefs, said that Canada needs to search exports from its ports, verify vehicle verification numbers (VINs) and restrict the sale of auto theft devices.
The committee also heard from Dan Service, founder of VIN Verifications Services Inc., who said Canada should have more rigorous nation-wide regulations for VINs, especially closer scrutiny at ports when it comes to vehicles high up on most stolen lists by insurance companies.
“An assigned VIN program assures credibility to vehicle registration programs in Canada, better protects Canadian consumers, benefits law enforcement by reducing calls for service, benefits the insurance industry by recovering vehicles and reducing payouts and creates a deterrent to the sale of stolen vehicles.”
Police chiefs emphasized the growing severity of the issue, telling the committee that car thefts are not just a case of stolen property but situations where Canadians are at risk of being robbed at gunpoint or by home invasion.
This has become a problem with repeat offenders, especially teenagers or young adults who may carry a lighter sentence.
Both police chiefs emphasized the need to increase minimum penalties as a way to deter future crimes from being committed.
“There is a significant level of participation from young offenders, not only in spotting the vehicles but committing the thefts themselves,” Carrique said. “That puts them at risk, we’re seeing a lot of them are armed in the Greater Toronto Area which puts officers and the public at risk and the penalties are just not a deterrent for these young offenders who are making a substantial amount of money to engage in this criminal activity. There needs to be greater deterrents.”
The federal government even staged an auto theft summit on Feb. 8 to help find solutions to this growing problem in Canada.
As a result, the government spent $28 million to bolster the CBSA’s capacity to investigate stolen vehicles and are looking at ways to ban auto theft devices.
Carrique told the committee that since the summit, there have been over 3,000 vehicles stolen in Canada.
Brochet said the summit was a “very important first step but it is just the first step. We will need to be fully committed and implement real action.”
In 2022, over 105,000 cars were stolen in Canada, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada.
National Post
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