GTA police recover 24 stolen vehicles worth $2.1M and destined for Dubai

Twenty-four stolen vehicleshave been returned to Canada after two Greater Toronto Area police forces intercepted a shipment of vehicles on its way to Dubai, police say.

In a news release on Friday, Halton Regional Police say they and Peel Regional Police recovered the vehicles while theywere in transit in Morocco.

Police say the Canada Border Services Agency helpedto intercept the vehicles. The investigation began last month, police say.

The vehicles are worth an estimated $2.1 million. One of the vehicles is a Rolls-Royce worth an estimated $500,000.

No one has been arrested. Officers from Halton police's auto theft task force are continuing to investigate.

Halton police say the vehicles were stolen in what police call "reprogrammed" thefts. That means the thieves enter the vehicles and reprogram the ignition computers, which allows them to drive the vehicles away using a new key.

According to police, the thieves then drive the vehicles to the Port of Montreal or load them into shipping containers in Toronto and transport them to Montreal by rail.

Halton police say they are using "significant resources" to investigate automobile thefts.

In the release, police say residents can take the following measures to decrease thechances of their vehicles being stolen:

• Park your vehicle in a locked garage.
• Block the exit of a potential target vehicle with a second vehicle parked behind it.
• Install an on-board diagnostic blocker or protector.
• Install a steering wheel lock device.
• Install an aftermarket GPS tracking device.
• Install home security cameras on the exterior of the residence.